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LONDON PUBLISHED MARCH 15 th 1853 BY DAY&SON LI 7 MOOR A P’Hl Ho TO THE QUEEN 17 CATE CTREE I LINCOLNS INN FIELDS

THE INDUSTRIAL ARTS

THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.

ILLUSTRATIONS

OF THE

THE

GREAT EXHIBITION OF WORKS OF INDUSTRY, 1851.

DEDICATED, BY PERMISSION, TO HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE PRINCE ALBERT.

Bi M. DI6BY WYATT, Architect.

LONDON:

PUBLISHED BY DAY AND SON, LITHOGRAPHERS TO THE QUEEN.

MDOOCLI.

The present W ork aims at being a faithful record of the charac¬
teristics of those productions displayed at the (treat Exhibition of
1851, which best illustrate the advanced condition of the Industrial

Arts of the Nineteenth Century.

«/

As such, it is most respectfully dedicated to Your Royal Highness,
the illustrious patron of those arts, and the consistent friend of all
engaged (however humbly) in their promotion,

BY YOUR ROYAL HIGHNESS’S

OBEDIENT,

HUMBLE

SERVAN

77 Great Russell Street ,
September 14 th, 1851

M. DIG BY WYATT.

list
!/0h. I

IN T R 0 D U C T10 N.

I he vastness of the multitudes, who have flocked to examine and derive instruction
from the thousands of* objects displayed at the Great Exhibition of Industry of 1851 , is
scarcely less remarkable, than the pertinacity with which all, whose business or inclination
interests them in the great office of production, return again and again for the purpose
of imprinting on their memories the aspect of works admirable for abstract perfection,
or as affecting those specialties with which each visitor may be connected. A con¬
sideration of the above fact has induced the Author to believe, that a publication, in
which the most beautiful objects he might be enabled to select should be reproduced,
through the best means of graphic representation available in the present day, could not
fail to be at once useful and popular.

It has been remarked, that in History a great combination of circumstances has
rarely occurred without having been accompanied by the developement of a master mind,
the native powers of which, moulded to specific form by those circumstances, have in
turn reacted upon the conjunction of events, and so created those turning points of
Story which survive conspicuous, while all around is lost in darkness and obscurity.
It is from the traditions of such epochs that Historians have been enabled to furnish
living pictures of past events. In Art it is a no less regular phenomenon, that when¬
ever the aesthetic tendencies of nations have demanded the embodiment ot some great
transitional phase of imagination, the fitting artist has seldom failed to erect corresponding
monuments, thereby setting up beacons by which after ages, in looking back over the
intervening sea of time, have been enabled to recognise the great features ot physical
and mental eccentricity, stamped on every crumbling relic ol tower, tomb, temple,

basilica, mosque, church, god, saint, or prophet.

In Industry, an analogous coincidence has obtained between the mental and physical
requirements of nations, and the developement of appropriate manufactures,—the forms

INTRODUCTION.

and processes of which have been from age to age commemorated on great occasions, the
records of which may be regarded, as those of the festivals of contemporaneous labour.
There can be little doubt, that what the Olympic Games, and the Imperial solemnities and
triumphs were to Greece and Rome, her Expositions have been to France. As the
traditions of the industrial arts of Greece and Rome faded away, and new processes
were developed by the Christian element, the carvers, the painters, the embroiderers,
the mosaic workers and goldsmiths of Byzantium, held their festival in the inauguration
of Santa Sophia. In the glorious feasts of Haroun el Raschid, the Oriental variations from
Gi ’eek practice asserted their independent existence. The sum of the modifications
induced, by lapse of years, on the fountains of art-workmanship springing from those
sources, were respectively represented in the inauguration of the cathedral of Saint Denis
and the mosque of Corduba,—the former illustrating the nascent processes of Gothic, the
latter of Moorish art—the former of these two series of processes to accomplish their
destiny, and reach their climax, in the construction of Cologne Cathedral, the latter in
that of the Alhambra. The great religious anniversaries of the middle ages were so
many vast fairs, at which Exhibitions of Industry took place,—the glorious festivals and
niascherate of Sienna, Florence, Pisa, and Venice, were celebrations of the first triumphs
of commercial enterprise, and their records, perhaps, better illustrate conditions of mediaeval
supply and demand than those of any other states throughout Europe.

The revival of the forms of ancient art, through the study of the relics bequeathed
by it, soon extended its influence over manufacture, and in the completion of the Sistine
Chapel and the commencement of St. Peter’s the principle of such a revival was
publicly acknowledged and celebrated in Italy. In the Meeting of Henry VIII. and
Francis I. on the Field of the Cloth of Gold, and in the triumphs of Maximilian, the
extension to France, to England, and to Germany, of the arts and types of form peculiar
to the period of the Renaissance, must be fully recognised. Working on the basis
of that revival, manufactures and designs for manufactures gradually dwindled into an
unsatisfactory condition, and we look in vain for any very important mark of
change until the genius of Colbert arose, invigorating the whole commercial system of
Europe. The foundations of many improvements in production, secured by that profound
minister for France, were gradually worked upon until originality was attained ; and the
impetus so given to graceful, although bizarre design, was communicated by France
to the other nations of Europe, and thence originated the shoals of scroll-work Rocaitte,
which overspread every object manufactured in this country during the last century.

The pi ogie^s of production thus elaborated in France, at length, and at its

INTRODUCTION.

culminating point, demanded some distinct enunciation ; and it was accordingly in the
fiibt Paiisian ‘ Exposition 5 of 1797 that the triumphs of the old school of Sevres, of
Louie, of the Gobelins, &c., were achieved. The utility of exhibitions, as healthy
stimulants to Industry, was thereby so manifested, that they have been repeated under
every form of government which has since prevailed in France; and in their records
an interesting narrative of the rapid growth of human ingenuity, in the hot-bed of
modern civilisation, is to be met with. The almost incessant wars which so long
devastated Europe, and which only terminated in 1815, impeded the culture of those
arts which have been emphatically designated the “ Arts of Peace.” Those wars,
however, had no sooner terminated than an extraordinary activity was manifested, more
especially in this country; and on looking back over the last six-and-thirty years, elements
of change must be found to have been introduced, calculated to derange the whole
previous system of fabrication and demand. The extension of the application of steam,
gas, &c. to the thousand purposes upon which they are now brought to bear, have
scarcely less affected National Industry by changing the conditions of supply, than has
the spread of popular education by entirely altering the nature and peculiarities of
demand. The most remarkable feature of the movement to which we are alluding—that,
namely, which has taken place in this country during the last six-and-thirty years—is
the universality of developement attained by combining the division of labour in manu¬
facture with the aggregation of its results in commerce. Sympathising, on the one hand,
with the highest excellence both of art and manufacture, modern English production
has, on the other, effected a concurrent and unprecedented reduction in price. An
amount of thought and ingenuity equal to the origination of many of the monster
engineering works which form the pride, the boast, and the glory of the present day,
has been bestowed upon an attempt to reduce the cost of a common cotton print
the fraction of a farthing per yard. Other nations have not been idle while England
has worked, and it is, therefore, little wonderful that, under the action of a progress
worthy to have enlisted the pens of such men as Babbage, Brougham, Macculloch, Porter,
&c. to record, the great festival, in which that progress finds its tangible embodiment,
should speak eloquently, chronicling the race which has been run by all nations for

pre-eminence in a glorious, though peaceful, competition.

Were it but possible now to procure some pictures viv id enough "to ic-Ccill a S 01 M
of the principal elements and objects which adorned those triumphs ot industry of past
ao-es to which allusion has been made, how interesting and improving would the examination
of such collections be : as it is, years of study must now be given to realise in any

INTRODUCTION.

VUl

degree the tangibilities of history, of which, unfortunately, too few indications have
survived to our day. That it is incumbent on every age to leave to its successor the
best possible data as to the fruits of its labours and experiences, few will feel
disposed to deny; nor will they, probably, be less likely to admit, that if ever an
occasion existed, worthy of the best record the art of the nineteenth century could
create, that occasion most assuredly is to be met with in the Great Exhibition of
Works of Industry of 1851.

In the choice of the subjects for illustration the Author will not, it is hoped, expose
himself to the charge of having made in any way an invidious selection, or be supposed
to pledge himself to any expression of opinion on relative merits. His aim has been
to engrave such specimens as he believed would be likely to be practically useful in
naturalising among us improvements in purity of form or colour; in placing in juxta¬
position the excellencies of various nations; in furnishing models for manufacturers to
study and surpass ; and by means of which the Public may be enabled hereafter to test
the future progress of Industrial Art in this and other countries.

POSTSCRIPT.

In bringing to a conclusion his arduous labours of the last eighteen months, the
Author of the present Work cannot but indulge a feeling of almost parental anxiety
in finally committing it to the tender mercies of the world. He would fain, at least,
furnish it with such a letter of introduction, as may set forth to those who may
hereafter make its acquaintance the circumstances connected with its origin, growth,
and maturity.

An allusion to those circumstances, somewhat more in detail than is usual, may,
he trusts, be justified by the consideration that the present Work is the most im¬
portant application of Chromo-Lithography to assist the connexion which should subsist
between Art and Industry which has yet appeared; and, further, that it has been
produced upon a scale of magnitude, and with a degree of rapidity, unexampled
in this or any other country. A knowledge of the circumstances referred to may
tend, at the same time, in some degree to mitigate the severity of the atrabilious
critic, and to enlist the sympathies of the more kindly disposed. In the month of
April 1851 the present publication was not even thought of; and, when the number
of elaborate plates produced within the short space of time which has since elapsed
is borne in mind, some allowance may be made for occasional imperfections.

Shortlv after the opening of the Great Exhibition the Publisher called upon the
Author, and, stating his desire to demonstrate, upon a great scale, the capabilities of
colour-printing as an auxiliary to industrial education, requested him to undertake
this Work. The offer was immediately accepted, and the general scheme to be carried
out was drawn up and matured on the same day. The task of selecting from the
infinitely varied objects contributed to the Exhibition, such as appeared best to
represent specific interests in manufacture, or to suggest models for study and imitation,
was then commenced; and it must be obvious that, where so much presented itself
on every side to arrest attention, it was a matter of considerable delicacy and difficulty
to arrive at a determinate conclusion. The subjects of the plates, however, having-
been selected, the next step was their arrangement in such groups as were calculated
to display most agreeably their relative excellencies. No less than twenty talented
draftsmen were immediately set to work in making elaborate studies, under the Author’s

POSTSCRIPT.

constant superintendence ; and among them may be named Mr. Sliegh, Mr. Small-
field, Mr. Clayton, Mr. Pozzi, Mr. Delamotte, Mr. Michael, Mr. Butler, Mr.
Thomas, Mr. Maye, Mr. Rafter, Mr. Hayes, Mr. Pidgeon, Mr. Dalziel, Mr. Aglio,
Mr. Humphreys, Mr. Vinter, and Mr. Millais. Some apprehension at first existed
that it would be impossible to procure a sufficient number of satisfactory drawings
within the necessarily short time fixed upon for commencing the publication without
having recourse to foreign artists; but the energetic exertions and great ability of the
above-named gentlemen soon rendered it apparent that no such necessity would

exist.

As soon as a certain number of drawings had been completed, the work of

transferrins: them to stone commenced ; and, as many of our readers may possess but

imperfect ideas of the labour involved in this operation, we shall dwell for a few
moments on the processes which are indispensable.

For the purposes of Lithography the original drawing requires, in the first instance,
to be carefully traced. It is then retraced, or transferred to the stone, by interposing
between the surface of the latter and the drawing a sheet of thin paper, prepared on
the side next the stone with red chalk. The lithographer then draws upon the stone
with a greasy chalk or ink, as the case may be, the whole of the outline of the
subject, and as much of the shading as he may think necessary. On the conclusion
of this drawing in black and white, the stone is sent to the printer, who, after chemically
preparing it for the operation, takes off* carefully as many impressions as there are

colours required to perfect the polychromy of the original drawing. These impres¬

sions on thin paper are laid, whilst yet moist, upon a corresponding number of sup¬
plementary or colour stones, and passed through the lithographic press. By th is
means the outline of the first or key-stone is printed off' upon each of the remaining
stones of the series, and the artist is provided with an outline upon the latter, identical
with that which existed upon the key-stone. Carefully analysing the amount of each
colour in the original drawing, and noting the points of its predominance,—where, in
some cases, it is allowed to appear pure, and in others to enter only into the com¬
position of broken tints, — the artist proceeds to indicate upon each stone, in black
chalk or ink, the requisite amount for each separate colour. Great care is required to
bear in mind the succession of these tints, and to make due allowance for it, since it
is obvious that the last punted, by its greater or less degree of opacity, may tend to
kill all that has been done befoie. Great attention is likewise required in order that,
when the various stones are worked together, the filling in of one colour shall exactly
meet the space occupied by another, without either overlapping and producing dark
edges, or leaving white lines or gaps between each tint.

Supposing the artists work to have been satisfactorily terminated, much now de¬
pends upon the printer. Considerable hazard is incurred in the chemical preparation

POSTSCRIPT.

uf the Stone, since, if washed with acid of too great a strength, all the delicate lines will
disappear; or, if etched with too weak a solution, there will be a general tendency in
the tints to clog up and become overcharged. Still greater difficulties present tliem-
sches in so attaching the paper upon which the impression is taken to each of the
stones, as to cause the successive colours to fall into exactly their proper places, or, in
technical language, to cause the stone to “register” well. Considerable practice is neces¬
sary before the requisite amount of dexterity can be attained in this respect; and few
but those who have stood beside the press, and watched its practical manipulation,
would give the workman credit for the degree of skill which is essential to a successful
carrying out of this part of the operation. Where great rapidity is indispensable,
these difficulties are materially increased; because, if any colour be too heavily printed,
it will take so long to dry that it will for some time be impossible to work off the
remaining tints upon the same impression.

The qualities presented by the plates in the present work will, we sincerely believe,
do infinitely more honour to the reputation of the lithographic artists engaged in their
production than any eulogy which could be pronounced upon their works by the Au¬
thor. He is, however, personally, glad to have this opportunity of returning bis best

thanks to Mr. Francis Bedford, Mr. Sliegii, and Mr. Vinter, gentlemen to whose
refined taste and brilliant powers of execution the illustrations are mainly indebted for
their artistic excellence. Of the total number no less than one hundred and nine

subjects have been produced by Mr. Bedford and his assistants. Many plates of

great merit have been executed by the artists permanently attached to the establishment

of the Publisher.

It was originally intended to divide the work into thirty-eight parts, each con¬
taining four plates, to be delivered to the public at intervals of a fortnight. The work
was also issued in five divisions, each comprising eight parts; and, in order to render these
divisions of equal extent, it was found necessary to increase the number of parts to
forty, embracing, in the whole, 160 plates. The first number appeared on the 1st of
October, 1851, and the last will have been published on the 7th of March, 1853.

We may add a few details of the printing-office, to show the great extent of the
labour which has been involved in carrying out this publication, and the consequent
difficulties in keeping faith with the public, which have been surmounted by the
indefatigable energy and perseverance of the Publisher. Hie greatest number of
printings for any one subject has been 14, and the average numbei 7. The edition
printed” has amounted to 1300 copies. Hence, to keep pace with the demand
(each colour requiring a separate impression), the printer has had to pull the work
through the press no fewer than 18,000 times, on an average, per week, amounting in
the whole period to 1,350,500 pulls, after every one of which the stone requires to be
carefully cleaned, and the paper readjusted for “ register.” It may be readily believed

XII

POSTSCRIPT.

that the “plant” locked up in such a work as the present is very extensive, since it
has required 1069 stones, weighing in all about 25 tons. The weight of papei
consumed in the lithographic department has not been less than 17,400 lbs. , ami the
organisation of the business details of the work has engaged the almost undivided
attention of four or five superintendants; among whom may be especially noticed

Mr. W. Walker, whose exertions have truly been unceasing.

The letterpress, extending to nearly 350 folio pages, lias been most carefully executed
by Mr. Barclay, of Castle Street, Leicester Square, and assiduously watched through

the press by his intelligent overseer, Mr. Strangeways.

The labour of providing in such rapid succession a series ol literary notices to
accompany every plate — notices in which an endeavour has constantly been made to
condense as much information as could be obtained, not only concerning the subject
engraved, but the history and other peculiarities of the art of which it formed a
specimen—has necessarily been considerable, the great variety of the subjects entailing
no trifling amount of study and research. In these labours the Author has frequently
received valuable aid from gentlemen practically interested in art and manufactures,
and such obligations he has invariably recorded in the body of the work. It remains
for him only, further, to express his gratitude to four gentlemen who have laid him
under more especial obligations. To Mr. T. Everall Jones he is indebted for
constant attention and sympathy. By availing himself of his talent as a shorthand-
writer, the Author has alone been enabled to accomplish his task, the majority of the
articles having been written from dictation; while to his acquirements as a student,
and to his literary abilities, the work is indebted for no less than thirty-seven articles ;
among which may be especially mentioned the valuable series on the Commerce of
India; on the Trade of Sheffield and Birmingham; and on English Porcelain, Earthen¬
ware, and Carpets. From his friend and pupil, Mr. W. Burges, the Author has
derived fourteen articles, among the more important of which may be pointed out
those on English Furniture, on Stained Glass, and part of the series on Enamels,
and Damascening. Mr. C. Fowler, in addition to assisting the Author with occasional
extracts from German works, has contributed three valuable articles, respectively on
Encaustic Tiles, on German Stoves, and on Terra Cotta. Mr. T. Hayes has fur¬
nished two articles, one on Paperhanging, and one on Florentine Mosaics. For the

remainder of the work, rather more than one hundred notices, the Author is alone and
entirely responsible.

March 7th, 1853,

INDEX.

{The Figures refer to the Numbers of the Plates.]

- 131

141

- 43

136

142

- 69

Ackermann, Rudolph, his connexion with illustrated
literature -

Ackermann and Co., decoration of a box of water
colours by them -

Adam, Robert, characteristics of his internal decora
tions -

Ahmedabad, history of its commerce and manufactures
(and see India.)

Aitken, W. C., his remarks on the brass-trade of
Birmingham -

Albania, splendour of national costume, patterns and
processes -

Albanian embroidery, specimen of -
Alfred Jewel, the, a specimen of filagree or cloisonne
enamel -

Alhambra, Mr. Owen Jones’s work on the -
(and see Moorish Art.)

Alsatia, its manufactures, particularly cotton-printing
Altar and Reredos designed b} r Pugin
Altar-cloths (see Church Furniture).

Alto-relievo (see Sculpture).

Amiens Cathedral, stalls carved by Jean Turpin
Andirons (see Stoves and Grates).

Andre, M., Paris, his iron-castings; account of his
establishment; fountain in iron by him
Andreoli, Maestro Giorgio, and his son, their im¬
proved Majolica ware -
“Andromeda," by John Bell, cast in bronze by the
Coalbrook Dale Company
Anglo-Saxon works. Embroidery - - 90, 123

Jewellery - 66,82

Angora goat’s-wool, or mohair; description of the
raw material, processes of manufacture and
printing -

Arabesque decoration by Crace
Arabia, its ancient commerce with India
Aranjuez (see Spain).

Architectural decoration : historical sketch of
Side of a room, by Jno. Thomas, Loudon
Renaissance decoration in France
Hand-work stucco in the seventeenth and eight¬
eenth centuries; skill of the workmen; high
wages; introduction of papier mache
Carton pierre ; its employment in Paris ; pilas¬
ter by Cruchet -

Arabesque by Crace: composition ornaments,
by Jackson and Sons

(See Moorish Art, Crace, J. G., Paper-hanging,
Carton Pierre, Glass, Windows, Chimneys,

&c.)

Argand, his improvements in lamps
Arks, or chests, in old churches and mansions
Arkwright, origin of the name
Arkwright, Sir R., his invention of the “ water
frame ”

Arms and armour :

Damascened decorations
Historical notices of -
Of the Moors and Spaniards -
Pistols, &c., by Zuloaga

Indian; government mamifactory at Ilyder
abad -

Indian; history and manufacture of wootz, or
steel " "

Indian arms described; their variety of form and
decoration -

Gun-trade of Birmingham ; its origin, progress,
and peculiarities -

Decoration of ancient and mediaeval shields
(See also Birmingham, Sheffield, and Metal¬
work.)

Armorial bearings, on ancient hangings and tapestry
Arras (see Tapestry).

Arrian, his accounts of the commerce of India
Artificial stone (see Terra-Cotta).

Artistic friendships ; MM. De Bay and De Serignon ;

memoir of the former by the latter -
Art-Union of London, works by Minton, Foley,

and Hatfield, for - ‘

Astbury, Messrs., their improvements in earthen
ware -

Athens (see Greece).

Au^sburgh, its manufacture of arms and armour -
Austria, imperial porcelain manufactory at Vienna
Austria, Emperor of, Minton’s dessert service pre-

sented to him by her Majesty - # 11, 8J

Book-cover, &c., presented to her Majesty by
him

Austrian furniture and art in geneial^

Axminster carpets ; process of manufacture ; speci-
men by Jackson and Graham

Babylon; rich garments ; cloth of gold
Its ancient commerce with India

Bacchus, Mr., objects in glass by - ' ~

Bach, John Sebastian, Ins performance before it re-
dcrick the Great on Silbermanns “ fnrfe-

pianos - . A - 5

Backers, a German, inventor of the ‘ direct-action

- 53

- 64

- 141
104, 140

- 141

- 63

- 65

- 141

- 139
90, 125

- 90

- 116

151
101
3, 8
3, 8

- 36

- 124

135

117

- 140

- 147

171

109

158

- 132

72
104
18

- 59

pianoforte

Bacon, John, sculptor,

Apprenticed in a pottery

character of his works

engaged in Miss

Coade’s terra-cotta manufactory -

Bailey and Co., their works in the Great Exhi¬
bition ; open-work panel in brass - - 94

Bambaja, his works at the Certosa of Pavia - 50

Banks, peculiarities of his style of sculpture - 53

Barbedienne, M., his works in bronze - - 13

Barry, Sir Charles, his connexion with Pugin and

Thomas at the Houses of Parliament 63, 142
Barry, Edward, his design tor pianoforte by Messrs.

Broadwood - - - _ - 83

Basso-relievo (see Sculpture).

Batten, of Clapham, his specimen of bookbinding

and inlaying - - - _ - 52

“ Baudekin,” a cloth of silk and gold ; origin of the

term - - - _ _ - 42

Bavaria: Frescoes by Cornelius, at Munich - 73

Government glass works at Theresienthal - 38

Bayeux tapestry - - _ _ -121

Bazley, Mr., his lecture on the cotton manufacture 116
Beauvais ware (see Earthenware).

Bedsteads (see Furniture, history of).

Bedstead in metal, by Winfield of Birmingham - 43

Bedstead in zebra-wood by Leistler and Son, Vienna 158
Belfast, Miss Clarke’s lace manufactory - - 146

Belgium, ancient wood-carving in ■ - - 9

Bell, John, his Andromeda, Cupid, and Swan Foun¬
tain, and Gates, cast by the Coalbrook Dale
Company; characteristics of his works; his
efforts for the improvement of art-manufac¬

tures - - - - 19,53

Ilis works executed in Minton’s Parian - 58

Bells, Chinese (see China).

Benares (see India).

Berlin (see Prussia).

i.'ernardis, Bernardo di, his designs for Austrian

furniture - 109, 158

Bernini, influence of his taste on German art - 49
Betts, E. L., his seat in Kent, designed by Mr. John

Thomas - - - - - 63

Vase in terra-cotta exhibited by him - - 74

Beveridge, Erskine, of Dunfermline; account of his
manufactory; specimens of his damask table-
covers - - - - - 70

Bielefeld, Air., his remarks on interior decoration

and the use of papier mache - - 65

Bigelow, Wra., his application of steam power to

Brussels carpet weaving - 148

Bilbao rapiers (see Arms).

Birkin, of Nottingham ; specimen of machine-made

lace ------ 102

Birks, Simon, his designs for Minton and Co. - 11

Birmingham, history of the town and its trade - 98

General notice of its manufactures - - 184

Its “ brass toy-trade,” extent and importance - 43

Jewellery in the mediaeval style by Hardman • 82

Stained glass by Messrs. Chance - - 86

Objects in electrotype by Elkington and Mason 79
Silversmiths’ work by Gough of Birmingham - 98
Mediaeval stove by Hardman - 106

Account of Hardman’s establishment - - 142

Its participation in the Sheffield plate trade - 129
Block and cylinder printing (see Cotton-printing).
Bobbin net machine (see Nottingham Lace).

Bohemian glass, specimen by Count Harrach ; ac¬
count of his establishment; processes em¬

ployed - - - - 18, 38

Bolsover, Thomas, his invention of Sheffield

plating - 99, 126

Books (see Bookbinding ; Illuminated MSS.)
Bookbinding:

General notice of processes, “making up,” “ co¬
vering,” “ finishing,” and “ inlaying” - 52

History from the fifteenth to the seventeenth

centuries; designs by Holbein - - 52

Specimen of binding and inlaying, by Batten of

Clapham - - - - - 52

Works of Roger Payne, Johnson, Lewis, Ilay-
day; Italian and French binding; Gro-
lier, &c., cloth-binding, embossing-machine;
designs by Messrs. Owen Jones, Leighton,

Cole, Cundall, and Shaw - - - 96

Specimen by Leighton - - - - 96

Precious binding in mediaeval times ; numerous

specimens destroyed at the Reformation - 109
Book-cover, embroidered, by Erench of Rolton-le-

Moors - - - - - 47

Boot-front, embroidered, from Scinde - - 36

Bottcher, of Dresden, his improvements in earthen¬
ware and porcelain - - - 14, 31

His adoption of the kaolin discovered by Schnorr 31
Boule, of Paris, inventor of the inlaid work called

“ buhl”----- 126
Boulton and Watt (see Birmingham Manufactures).
Bow, porcelain works at
Brambilla, his works at the Certosa of Pavia
Brass (see Metal-work).

“Brass toy trade” (see Birmingham).

Bray, C., of Coventry, his ribbon manufactory
Brickwork, ornamental (see Terra-Cotta).

Britannia metal (see Metal-work).

British and Roman works:—

Pottery -

Primaeval jewellery and goldsmiths’ work
Enamels - -

- 97

- 50

- 60

- S7

- 82
- 107

- 59

- 83

Broadwood and Son, their improvements in piano¬
fortes -

Extent of their manufacture ; different forms
of instruments, pedals, &c.; ornaments
from one of their pianos -
Brongniart, his valuable contributions to the theory,

practice, and history of ceramic art - - 115

His accounts of Sevres porcelain, &c. 11,14,31,78,81
Bronze casting: In Prussia - - - - 1

History and statistics of the trade in Paris - 13

Group by Vittoz - - - - 13

Specimens by Matifat - - - - 21

Rauch's statues of Frederick the Great, Bliicher,
and other works - - - - 25

Panels at Brussels, by Geerts of Antwerp - 9

Marocbetti’s statue of Wellington at Glasgow - 33
Brousa, its silk manufacture - - - 10

Brown, Alfred, his designs for works in gold and
silver; Watherston and Brogden’s vase; his
connexion with Hunt and Roskell - - 66

Brunelleschi, his talents as sculptor and architect - 50
Brussels carpets, process of weaving; made by steam

in America - 148

Buckles and Buttons (see Birmingham Manufactures).
Buhl, panel by Fourdinois of Paris; origin and use

of buhl; processes - - - - 126

Bury, Talbot, his memoir of the late Mr. Pugin - 142
Byzantine Art and Architecture :

Taste of the Greeks for rich costume and em ¬
broidery : the “ Cappa di San Leone,” and
other specimens; extension of the art in
the Middle Ages; its preservation in the
Grreco-Russian Church - 20, 41, 80, 123

Invention of point lace - - - 146

Silkworms’ eggs introduced into Byzantium - 22
Filagree, or cloisonne enamels of Byzantium,

their influence on the Limoges enamels 51, 107
Illuminated MSS. of Byzantium ; Oriental ori¬
gin of the art; again transmitted by Ma-
hommedans to the East; resemblance of
Indian and Byzantine illuminations - 68

Use of gold in Byzantine art regulated by

artistic principles - - - - 72

Perforated stone windows - - - 15

Cabinet in Ebony by Lienard, Paris - - 155

Cabinet in oak, by Grace, designed by Pugin - 90

Cairo, perforated windows of plaster at - - 15

Calico-printing, its first introduction and extensive

application - - - - - 116

Process described - - - - 120

Calla, M., of Paris, his successful works in cast-iron 39
Cambay, the chief seat of Indian lapidaries - - 40

Campbell, Harrison, and Lloyd, Spitalfields, silks

woven by them - 22, 87

Candelabrum, by Trentanove of Rome - - 50

Cannon (sec Arms and Metal-work).

Canova, his encouragement of Gibson - - 17

Rauch, his pupil - - - - 25

Caradosso, his processes described by Cellini - 137

Carcel, his improvements in lamps - - 139

Carpets:—Their introduction and use in England 108,125
Those of Persia, India, and Turkey ; Indian
carpet loom; Axminster carpets; process
of manufacture - - - - 132

Extent of the English manufacture; processes;
Kidderminster, Brussels, Wilton; patent
tapestrj r , &c. - - - 148

Carton pierre, used at the Louvre in the sixteenth

century - - - - - 65

Successive improvements in the manufacture - 65
Pilaster, by Cruchet of Paris - - - 65

(and see Papier Mache.)

Carving (see Furniture, Wood-carving, Jade Stone,
ivory, &c.)

Cashmere (see India).

Cashmere goats, kept by Prince Albert; fabrics

manufactured from their wool - - 92

Cashmere shawls, account of the raw material,

trade, and manufacture - - - 28, 44

Imitations at Paisley - - - - 92

(and see India.)

Castiglione, Sabba, liis account of Italian marquetry 75
Cast-iron and cast-steel (see Metal-work).

Cellini, his works in bronze - - - 13

His application of damascening - - 101

Successful imitations of his works by Vechte - 105
Shields ascribed to him on insufficient grounds 117
His enamels admired by Francis I. - - 127

Ilis description of Caradosso’s processes - 137

His account of translucid enamels on relief 145
Ceramic art (see Earthenware and Porcelain).

Ceylon, its ancient commerce - 104, 140, 149

Chairs (see Furniture).

Chalices and patens, of the mediaeval era, their forms

and enrichments - - - - 41

Ancient specimens in France - - - 113

Specimen by Froment-Meurice - - 137

Chambers, Sir W., his descriptions and imitations of

Chinese art - - - - - 54

Ilis success in internal decorations - - 141

Chance, Messrs., stained glass by them - - 86

Chantilly, manufacture of porcelain at - - 14

INDEX.

104

118

116

113

146

121

- 19

Charlemagne, liis sword and crown, at Vienna 101, 113
Charles I., his valuable tapestries and other hangings 42
His pictures and other works of art - " ''

Ckarlottenberg, Rauch’s statue of Queen Louise - -•>

Fountain by March - - ” ’

Chelsea porcelain works - - ' ' ,, r

Chests, old, carved and painted - - 1Z0

Chimneys and chimney-shafts in Mediaeval and

Tudor buildings - - * !?’ ~

China, its arts and manufactures ; early trade m sil v
Lacquer-work described; its resemblance to that
of India - ~ “ J

Looking-glass frame carved in ebony - -

Interior decorations, perforated carving anil
fret-work, windows, furniture, use of glass,
and metallic mirrors

Bronzes inlaid with silver wire; bells, gongs,
and other objects of mixed metal -
Paper-hangings - ; *

Porcelain imported early into Lngland
Antiquity of its arts and manufactures
Jade-stone vases - " ' '

Enamels ; probable introduction of the art trom

Persia; peculiarities of execution; specimens 127
(and see Porcelain).

Chintz, by Japuis and Son of Paris
Chocolate cup in silver, by Lebrun of Paris
“ Christ-Engel,” legend of the; bas-relief by Rietschel
Chryselephantine art -

Churches, carved roofs of (see Wood-carving).

Church furniture, by French of Bolton-le-Moors -
Church plate, by Skidmore of Coventry
(and see Chalices and Patens.)

Cibber, peculiarities of his style of sculpture
Cinque-cento sculpture in Italy, its history
Clark, T., the “Coventry Ribbon,” designed by him
Clarke, and Clarke and Henderson, their improve¬
ments in paper-hangings - - 95, 100

Clarke, Miss, her revival of point lace, her manufac¬
tory at Belfast

Clementi, Muzio, his improvements in pianofortes -
Clodion, his works in bronze -

Cloisonne enamel (see Metal-work, Enamels).

Cloth of gold and silver (see Tapestry, India, and
K incob).

Coade, Miss Eleanor, her revival of terra-cotta

Bacon, the sculptor, engaged in her manufactory
Coal, its early employment in England
Coalbrook Dale Iron Company; its history ; extent
of the works -
Fountain and Gates and statue of “Androme¬
da” executed by them in bronze - 19,53

Coffret, or jewel-case, in ivory, by Matifat of Paris - 21
Coins and medals, Birmingham manufacture of - 134
Collard and C-ollard, pianofortes by - - 59

Collas, M., his works in bronze - - - 13

Colour (see Principles of Art).

Colour-printing on textile fabrics (see Cotton and
Woollen).

Constantinople (see Byzantium and Turkey).

Contreras, Raphael, his decoration of the Queen of

Spain’s cabinet - - - - 136

Coopcrtoria, or ancient ornamental book-covers (see
Bookbinding).

Copeland, Alderman, his manufactory at Stoke-

upon-Trent; porcelain by him - - 147

Corinthian brass (see Metal-work : Brass).

Cornelius, memoir of, and notice of his works ; silver
shield by him, presented by the King of
Prussia to the Prince of Wales - 35, 73

Cosmati family, their works in ornamental sculpture

at Rome - - - - - 50

Costume (see Albania, Byzantium, Embroidery,
Greece, India, Russia, Tunis, &c.)

Cotton manufacture: history of printing cottons in

France - - - - - 26

Fine muslins and cotton yarn of Paisley - 92
History and statistics of the manufacture in

England - - - - -116

Extreme fineness of English yarn - -116

Great and increasing consumption of raw

material - - - - -116

Printing processes described .... y>o
Manufacture in Switzerland - 144

(See, also, India.)

Courtey, Pierre, his works in enamel - - 156

Cousin, Jean, stained glass designed by him - 114

Coventry : origin and progress of the ribbon trade ;
improvements in the manufacture; local sta¬
tistics; “ the Coventry ribbon ” - - 60

Crace, J. G., his works:—Designs for printed mohair 64
Cabinet in oak, designed by Pugin - - 90

Carpet in the mediaeval style, designed by Pugin 108
Painted arabesque - - - - 141

Cradle of Henry V. - 125

Cradle carved in boxwood by Rogers for her

Majesty - - - - - 130

Crane, Sir F., his tapestry manufactory at Mort-

_ lake .42, 108

Crompton, his invention of the “mule” - - 116

Cruchet, of Paris, pilaster in carton pierre and other
works by -

Crystal fountain, by Osier of Birmingham
Crystal vases and Indian jewellery -
Culmbatch of Berlin, his works in metal
Cupboards (see Furniture).

“Cupid and Panther,” bas-relief, by Rietschel
Cutch (see India),

Cutlery (see Metal-work, and Sheffield).

Dacca (see India).

Dacca muslins, described by Tavernier
Dacca, progress of its cotton manufacture in the
18th century; ultimate decline
Daggers (see Arms, Metal-work, and Sheffield)

Damascus blades - - _

Damascening, practised in China at a remote period
Its application to weapons; employed by Cellini
History and processes of the art; specimen by
Falloise of Liege - _ \

- 23

- 40

- 1

- 29

157

135

131

151

Damascening ( cont .) t—

(and see Metal-work.) . ..

Damask Table-covers, by Beveridge of Dunfermline;
processes ot linen manufactuie; \arietics ot

production - - “

Darner, Mrs., characteristics of her sculpture
Her models in terra-cotta - -

Damet, Madame, her discovery of china clay at

St. Yreix - - - “

De Bay, Auguste, of Paris, the “first Cradle, a
group in marble, by; memoir of the artist -
Decoration (see Architectural Decoration).

Delft ware (see Earthenware).

Delhi (see India).

Della Robbia, Luca, his improvements in fictile art
His employment of terra-cotta -
Characteristics of his style - -

Memoir and account of his discoveries, and those
of his family

Busts of the Emperors at Hampton CourtPalace
Minton’s imitations of Della Robbia ware
Della Quercia (or Della Ponte), his famous fountain
at Sienna, and other works - *

Deniere, M., bronze works executed for his establish¬
ment- - - - -

D’Eon, Chevalier, his taste in bookbinding -
Department of Practical Art, collection of Indian
fabrics in its Museum - - 72,

Depouilly of Paris, printed muslins and other pro¬
ductions, by -

Derby porcelain works - -

Derbyshire, imitations of Florentine mosaic
De Serignon, M., his memoir of Auguste De Bay,
sculptor

Design (see Principles of Art, Schools of Design).
Designs of French and Indian productions (see
France and India).

De Stael, Madame, her censure of German art
Diana of Poictiers, bindings of her books -
Dieterle, G., coffret, lamp, &c., designed by him for
Matifat of Paris - 21,

Sevres Vase, “Rimini," designed by him
Donatello, characteristics of his style
Drake, Frederick, of Berlin, a pupil of Rauch, re¬
lievos from his pedestal to the statue of
Frederick William III.—subject, “ThePlea¬
sures of Public Gardens;” notice of his other
works -

Dresden porcelain manufacture, its history -
Dudgeon, J. W., his account of Chinese jade-stone
carvings - - - - -

Dunfermline, history of its linen manufacture;
“ Damask Table-covers,” by Beveridge, from
designs by Owen Jones and Walter Baton -
Dupleschin and Dieterle, MM., their designs for
theatrical scenery -
Durer, Albert, his carvings -

Bronze statue of him by Rauch
His engravings on ancient arms
Durham Book of the Gospels, its sumptuous binding
Dutch tiles, remarks on their design and execu¬
tion -

11
45
50

67
74
67

- 50

151

97
103

- 61

139

118

101

109

- 106

Earthenware:

Alajolicn; its history; specimen of its revival

by Minton - - - - 11

Della Robbia ware described; works of Luca

and his family ; imitations by Minton - 67
Vase in Beauvais ware by Mansard - - 6

History of the manufacture in England, 81, 89,97,147
History of the manufacture in France - - 78

Old drinking-vessels of different materials - 89
Glazed tiles, ancient and modern; their appli¬
cation to stoves by Minton - - 106

Their employment for stoves in Germany - 55
Minton’s terra-cotta figure of Galatea, and Ma¬
jolica garden vases - - - 97

Vase and dish in Parian; description of that

material, and process of manufacture - 58
(and see Porcelain, Terra-Cotta and Tiles.)

East India Company; historical sketch of its origin

and progress - 149, 157

Eastlakc, Sir C., his remarks on Italian marquetry 75
On the style of design suited to different degrees

of relievo in sculpture - 133

Ebelman, M., of Sevres, his exertions in the revival

of enamelling - 57,115

Ebony Cabinet by Licnanl, Paris - - - 155

Echarts, G. and F., of Chelsea, their improvements

in paper-hangings - - - - 95

Education in Art (see Schools of Design).

Edward IV., his library of MSS. - 143

Egypt, sculpture in ivory in - ■ - 21

Its ancient intercourse with India 104, 140, 149

Electrotype (see Metal-work).

Elephants known to the ancients, and in Europe in

the Middle Ages - - - 16, 140

Elephant trapping from India - - - 16

Elers, Brothers, their improvements in earthenware 147
Elkington and Mason, Messrs., objects executed in
electrotype by them; notice of their esta¬
blishment - - - 79 , 138

Emanuei Philibert, statue of, b\ r Marochetti - 33
Embroidery:—

English vestments, &c., sent to England by St.

Gregory,and imitated by Anglo-Saxons 90, 123
Applied to hangings for walls and to gar¬
ments - - - - - 42

Book-coyer, by French of Bolton; practical
details and authorities on the art; reference
to old English specimens - - - 47

Applied to Nottingham Lace - - - 30

Specimens from Switzerland - - - 144

Byzantine, the “ Cappa di San-Leone - 41 so

History of costume embroidery of the Greek ’
empire - - - _ - 80

Its characteristics and influence on other nations 123
Albanian, specimen of - - _ _

Greek (modern), specimen of, pattern and prices 76
Embroidered bags - . -123

Embroidery (cont.) >

Russian, specimen of; its resemblance to that

of Byzantium -

Turkish, its processes and characteristics
Tunisian, specimens from saddles
Indian: from Dacca, its peculiarities -
On elephant trapping -

On Cashmere scarf -

On boot-front from Scinde
On Cashmere shawl; brilliancy of effect -
On black cloth -

Processes described; the art only prac¬
tised by Mahommedans
Applique -

Enamels (see Metal-work).

Enamelled slate by Magnus
Encaustic tiles; history of their manufacture and
use for pavements ; specimens by Minton
Engraving on glass, processes employed
Escrutoire, by Wettli of Berne -
Evans and Co., printed woollen table-cover, by
Evelyn, his notice of Chinese porcelain
His patronage of Grinling Gibbons

20
10
4
12
16
28
36
44
84

56
- 88

- 103

128
- 18

- 7

- 120
- 97

53, 130

Faienza-ware, a term applied to majolica (see Ma¬
jolica).

Falconnet, his statuettes in Sevres porcelain - 14

Feilner and Co., of Berlin, their improved earthen¬
ware stoves - - - - - 55

Ferrara steel; Andrea di Ferrara - 3, 101

Fetis, M., of the Conservatoire of Brussels, on the

history of pianofortes - - - 59

Feucheres, M.,his designs for works in bronze, &c. 13, 93
Fiamingo, his carvings - - - r 9

Fictile art (see Earthenware and Porcelain).

Filagree enamel (see Metal-work : Enamels).

Fire-places (see Chimneys, Stoves).

“ First Cradle,” by De Bay of Paris; memoir of

the artist - - - - - 61

Fischer of Berlin, his works in bronze - - 1

Prince of Wales’s shield modelled by him 35, 73
Flanders, ancient wood-carving in - - - 9

Silk manufacture in - - - - 22

Arras and other tapestry - - - 42

Flax, its growth and manufacture; heckling, spin¬
ning, and weaving - - - - 70

Flaxman, his adaptation of actual incidents; his en¬
couragement of Gibson - - - 17

His works in terra-cotta - - - 74

His Shield of Achilles - 117

Floors of mediajval buildings - - - 108

(and see Carpets, and Furniture)

Florence, works of Luca della Robbia at - - 67

Florentine mosaics and marquetry - - - 75

Florentine mosaic; history of the art; description
of the Fabrica Ducale; processes; imita¬
tions by Woodruff of Bakewell - - 103

Flues (see Chimneys).

Foley, J. II., his works reproduced in Parian - 58
Memoir, and notice of his works; his statue,

“ A Youth at a Stream,” cast in bronze by
Hatfield - - - - - 77

Fortoul, Ilippolyte, his description of Rietschel’s

sculpture - - - - - 5

Ilis account of the works of Rauch of Berlin - 25
Fountains (see Crystal, Iron, Terra-Cotta, &c.)
Fourdinois of Paris, buhl panel by - - - 126

Fowler, Charles, his paper on terra-cotta - - 74

France, notices and illustrations of its arts and manu¬
factures :—Bronze casting - - - 13

History of the porcelain manufacture at St.

Cloud, Chantilly, Vincennes, and Sevres - 14

Silk manufacture - - - - 22

Cotton-printing at Rouen, &c.; M. Perrot’s
machine - - - - - 26

Iron-casting; fountain by Andre; worksofCalla 39
Ribbons, history of the manufacture; specimens

from St. Etienne - - - - 60

History of wood-carving - - - 69

History of the manufacture of pottery and

porcelain - - - _ - 78

Objects in ivory, gold, and silver, by Froment-

93,

137

100

105

106
111
113

113

114
119
116
126
145
139

Meurice

Bookbinding, by Grolier, Padaloup, &c.
Paper-hangings -

Shield and pistols by Lepage Moutier -
Stoves, recent artistic improvements
Jewellery by Rudolphi
Chocolate-cup in silver by Lebrun
History of gold and silversmiths’ work
History of stained glass
Lyons silk -
Chintz by Japuis and Son
Buhl panel by Fourdinois
Enamelling -

Manufacture and improvements in lamps
Statistics of the jewellery and cabinet-making
trades of Paris - - - 153 15

(see, also, Renaissance, Wood-carving, History
of Art, Sevres, St. Yreix, &c.)

Francis I., his admiration of Cellini’s enamels
french, J. G., of Bolton, book cover by
Fresco-paintings of Cornelius ...
Friezes by Minton, in imitation ofLuca Della Robbia
I roment-Men rice, of Paris, his artistic career; de¬
scription of his establishment and principal
works ; objects in ivory, gold, and silver 93 , 137
Fulham earthenware and porcelain works - 89 97

Furniture:—History of, in England 90, 125, 143, 150
Sideboard, &c., by Snell, designed by Maro-

chetti - - - - 125, 150

127

Snell’s process of seasoning wood
Marquetry, by Trollope
Sideboard by Jackson and Graham
Cabinet by Crace, designed by Pugin -
French, in the seventeenth century
Buhl panel by Fourdinois
Origin and use of buhl; process of inlaying
Bookcase, by Leistler and Sons of Vienna °
Chinese -

125
75

143

126
126
109

INDEX.

Furniture (cont.) :—

Ebony cabinet by Lienard, Paris - _ 155

Of Austrian mansions; bedstead by Leistler 158
(see, also, Carpets and Wood-carving.)

Garrard, Messrs., their works as gold and silver¬
smiths and jewellers; specimens of plate by
them - . . - - 46

Gcei ts, brothers, of Antwerp, their wood-carvings

11 Massacre of the Innocents ” - ° . 9

Geiss of Berlin, his cast in zinc of the “Amazon”

by Kiss - - _ _ - 1

Gelatine moulds employed for casts of works of art 79
Genoese point-lace - _ _ - 14(5

Gerente, M., ol Paris, stained glass by him - - 114

German stoves, their ordinary form and successive

improvements - . _ - 55

Germany :—History of its glass manufacture - 38
History of sculpture in - - - 49

Old painted linen cloths for mural decoration - 71
Its old earthenware - - - - 89

Its paper-hangings - - - - 100

Ghiberti, characteristics of his style - - 50

Gibbons, Grinling, memoir and works of - 53 , 130

Gibson, John, his adaptation of actual incidents;

“The Hunter" - - - - 17

His works reproduced in Copeland’s statuary
porcelain - - - _ - 58

“ I he Hours leading forth the Horses of the
Sun,” a basso-relievo - 133

Giorgio (Maestro) and his son, their improved ma¬
jolica ware - - - - - 11

Girard, l'reres, their improvements in lamps - 139
Girardon, his works in bronze - - - 13

Glasgow, Wellington statue by Marochetti - - 33

Glass :—Used by the Romans for windows - - 15

History of its manufacture in England ; process
of engraving - - - - 18

Casting, annealing, grinding, and polishing;
constituents of flint-glass ; its colour in¬
fluenced by oxygen - - - 23

Works of F. and C. Osier ; the Crystal Fountain 23
Objects cut and engraved by Green, Bacchus,

and Pellatt - - - - 18

By Pellatt, Naylor, and Green - - 110

History and description of the Venetian pro¬
cesses ; invention of cut-glass ascribed to
Lehmann - - - - -110

History of the manufacture in Germany; spe¬
cimen of Bohemian glass ; Count Harrach’s
manufactory, materials and processes em¬
ployed ; productions of Silesia and Bavaria 38
Its use iu China - - - - 54

Stained; its history in England - - 86

In France - - - - - 114

Glazed tiles (see Tiles).

Goat’s wool (see Cashmere goats and Mohair).

Gobelin tapestry, its first importation into England 42

OriiHn of the manufacture

- 108

Gold and goldsmith’s work (see Metal-work).

Gold thread used in Indian embroidery ; process of

its manufacture - - - - 12

Gold cloth, gold and silver tissue (see India, lvincobs).
Gough of Birmingham, silversmiths’ work by - 98

Goujon, Jean ; his carvings in wood - - 69

Grates and stoves (see Stoves).

Greasley and Ilopcroft, Nottingham, lace-flounce by 30
Greek art: chryselephantine, or combination of ivory

with gold, &c. - - - - 21

Of the Lower Empire (see Byzantium).

Greek Church in Russia ; its preservation ofByzan-

tine types - - - - - 20

Greece and Albania : splendour of national costume;

embroidered jacket; patterns and processes - 76

Embroidered bags from - - - 123

Green, J. G., objects in glass by - - 18, 110

Grolier, Count, bindings of his books - - 96

Guettard, his discovery of china-clay near Alen?on 31
Guns (see Arms and Metal-work).

Gun-stand from Tunis - - - - 34

Ilamon, M., Sevres vase decorated by him - - 14

Hancock, Joseph, of Sheffield, his manufacture of

plated goods and Britannia metal - 99, 129

Hardman, J., his works,- his association with Pugin,

his establishment at Birmingham - - 142

Mediaeval stove designed by Pugin - - 106

Jewellery - - - - - 82

Altar and Reredos - - - - 142

Hargreaves, his invention of the spinning-jenny - 116
Henry VIII., his collection of pictures - - 143

Harrach, Count, specimens of Bohemian glass ; notice

of his establishment; processes employed - 38

Harwood, his improvements in paper-hangings - 95
Hatfield, J. A., notice of his works; his bronze cast,

“ A Youth at a Stream ” - - - 77

Hayday, his taste and skill in bookbinding - - 96

Heathcoat, J no., his invention of the “ bobbin-frame ” 102
Hengrave Hall, inventories ; early use of carpets and

fire-irons - - - - -121

Henry V., his cradle, preserved at Brislington, near

Bristol - - ■ - - 125

History of Art and Manufactures :—

Notices of sculpture in England; works of
Gibbons, Cibber, Roubiliac, Wilton, Banks,
Nollekens, Bacon, Mrs. Damer - - 53

Wood-carving: English mediaeval roofs, screens,

stalls, &c., in churches and old houses - 62

Memoir and works of G ibbons and his successors 130
Wood-carving in France - - ' 69

Moorish art, its origin; preservation of tradi¬
tional patterns - - - ~ l-

Renaissance decoration in France - -

English paper-hangings - 42, 71, 9°,

French paper-hangings - ; ' 100

Perforated windows in Moorish, Indian, and^

Persian aarchitecture - - } 5 > ^4

Cashmere shawl manufacture, causes of its decline 44
Indian illuminated MSS., the art probably in¬
troduced from Byzantium - * tuS

History of Art ( cont .) :_

Hindoo and Mahommedan elements of Indian
works of art . . _ 34

Antiquity of Indian arts and commerce 72, 104, 140,
tj . , 149

isronze-castmg m France and Prussia - 1 , 13

Jewellery in England; British, Irish, Roman,
Saxon, and mediaeval - - - 82

Gold and silversmiths’ work in France 113, 153
Caradosso’s processes - - . - 137

Ancient and mediaeval shields and bucklers, and
modern imitations - - - - 118

Ancient enamels, filagree or cloisonne - 51

Champleve or Limoges - - 107

Late Limoges - 145 , 156

Damascening - - - . i.-ti

Electrotype, its invention and application - 79
Lse of brass, latten, and other mixed metals in
England -

Trade of Birmingham -
Sheffield and its manufactures -
Old English grates and stoves -
Manufacture of Indian steel
Resemblance of Russian and Byzantine em¬
broidery, &c. -

Origin and practice of embroidery in the East -

Sumptuous costumes, cloth of gold, &c.

Costume embroidery of the Greek empire 72, 80, 123
Silk trade of Lyons - - - - 119

Cotton manufacture and printing - 116,120

Woollen manufacture -
Use and manufacture of carpets in England
Persian, Turkish, and Indian carpets; Indian
loom; A xini nster, processes of manufacture
Nottingham lace -

Hand-made lace -
Pillow-lace trade of Honiton -
Ancient arms and armour -
Della Robbia ware, with memoirs of the family
English earthenware and porcelain 81,89,97,147
French earthenware and porcelain - - 7S

Terra-cotta in England - - -74

Encaustic tiles for pavements -
Stained glass in England
In France -

Architectural decoration

- 94

- 98
99, 129

- 121
- 124

108

132

102

146

154

101

English furniture
Italian and English marquetry
Florentine mosaic -
Bookbinding -
Mediaeval precious bookbinding
Hoffman of Berlin, white porcelain stove by
liolbein, his designs for bookbinding
For jewellery -
His gateway at Whitehall

- 128
- 86

- 114

- 141

90, 125, 143, 150

- 75

- 103
52, 96

- 109

- 55

- 52

- 66

- 74

- 9

- 89

Holland, ancient wood-carving in -

Delft earthenware ...

Holland, the architect, his encouragement of ara¬
besque decoration - - - - 141

Iloole, Robson, and Hoole, Sheffield, hot-air and

other stoves by - 99, 129

Honiton Lace: specimen by Mrs. Treadwin; her

exertions to promote the trade - - 154

Hope, Thomas, his remarks on Moorish architecture 136
Hossauer of Berlin, the Prince of Wales’s shield

executed by him - - - 35, 73

“ Hours, the, leading forth the Horses of the Sun,”

a basso-relievo by Gibson - 133

Howell, James, and Co., London, silk woven for them 22
“ Huguenot lace” - - - - - 146

Hunt and lloskell, their works - - 27, 117

Vechte engaged by them - - 105,117

Enamelled vase by - - - - 156

“Hunter, the,” a statue by Gibson of Rome - 25

“ Hunter and Panther,” by Jerichau of Copenhagen ;

memoir of the artist - - - - 57

Hutton, William, his notices of the early history of

Birmingham - - - - - 98

Hyderabad (sec India).

Illuminated MSS. of the Greeks and Romans; of
Byzantium; of ancient and modern India - 68

India, notices and illustrations of its art and manu¬
factures :

History of its commerce, ancient and modern 1-10,

149, 157

Lacquer from Lahore - - -

Muslins exported to Turkey -

Embroidery from Dacca -

Bullion embroidery - - - -

Distinction of castes, its effects on art -
Manufacture of gold thread for embroidery
Use of perforated stone windows
Embroidery from Dacca ...

Bullion Embroidery -

History and process of embroidery ; practice of
the art confined to the Mahommedans;
skill of the rafugars, or darners -
Mr. Owen Jones on principles of colour
Elephant trapping, embroidered
lvincobs, their splendour; silk trade of Moor-
shedabad - - : - -

lvincobs woven at Ahmedabad and Benares
Process of weaving in India -

Trade of Ahmedabad in silk, ribbons, paper, &c.
Scarf-end from Cashmere; Cashmere shawl
manufacture - - -

Specimen of lac-work; Indian decorations of
plane surfaces
Embroidered boot-front fromScinde; manufac¬
ture of arms at Hyderabad ; trade of Scinde
in leather, silk, arms, &c.; principles of
colour applied to decoration
Artistic superiority of the productions of the
northern provinces
Crystal vases and jewellery; the lapidary’s wheel;

tools for stone-cutting; rock temples
Native gold and silversmiths, passion for jewel¬
lery, silver filagree processes, &c. -
Cashmere shawl; brilliancy of embroidery con

2
10
12
140
12
12
15
56
140

- 56
36, 56

- 16

16
24
24
24

- 28
f

- 32

- 36
e

- 40

India (cont.) :—

trusted with woven Indian fabrics; inge¬
nuity arid cunning of shawl dealers - 44

Cashmere shawls: looms; process of weaving,
cleaning, bleaching, &c.; cost of shawls;
decline of the manufacture - - 44

Dacca muslin scarf-end, embroidered ; Mr. Tay¬
lor’s work on the Dacca manufacture, the
town and district, raw material, spinning,
qualities and price of yarn, fine muslins - 48
Illuminated manuscripts: ancient types; simi¬
larity of old and modern specimens; de¬
corations probably derived from Byzan¬
tium - - - - 68, 149

lvincob pattern; combination of gold and co¬
lours; remarks by Owen Jones; love of
the ancients for cloth of gold, &c.; splen¬
did robes of Babylon, Rome, Byzantium,
and modern India- - - - 72

Embroidery on black cloth; Hindoo elements

of modern art in India - - - 84

Embroidery (applique) on crimson silk; Ma¬
hommedan elements of Indian art exem¬
plified in architecture - - - 88

Decoration of a saddle-cover - 104

Autiquity of Indian art and commerce 104, 140,

149, 157

Lacquer-work from Cashmere; principles of art
in surface decoration ; conventionalities of
form; harmony of ground, pattern, out¬
line, ami colour --- - 112

Trade with England in cctton goods - - 116

Carpets fend carpet-loom ... 132
Steel, or wootz, its antiquity and perfection ;

process of manufacture - - - 124

Enamels from arms ... 124 , 135

Variety of arms and armour in form and

decoration - - - - 135

Group of enamelled objects ; processes em¬
ployed; goldsmith’s work in Cutch - 152
Inlaying (see Marquetry, Buhl, Bookbinding).

Irish linen manufacture; excellence of damasks - 70
Irish (Celtic) jewellery - - - - 82

Iron (see Metal-work).

Italy, its art and manufactures :

Earthenware in the sixteenth century (Majolica) 11
Silk manufacture - - - - 22

Sculpture, history of - - - - 50

Florentine origin of marquetry - - 75

Bookbinding of the time of the Medici - 96

Ivory, its combination with gold, &c. in ancient art 21
Ivory-carving in Assyria, Greece, and Egypt - 21

CottVet by Matifat of Paris - - - 21

Ivory-carving iu France, its history - - 69

Group by Froment-Meurice of Paris - - 93

Throne and footstool presented to Her Majesty

by the Rajah of Travancore - - 157

Jackson of Battersea, his improvements in paper-

hangings

Jackson and Graham, Axminstcr carpet and side¬
board by 132, 143

Jackson and Son, composition decorations by - 141
Jacobi of Beilin, bis works in bronze - 1

Ilis claim to the invention of the electrotype

process - - - - - 79

Jacquard-loom, its application to weaving damasks 70
To silk-weaving - - - - 87

To lace-making - 102

To carpet-weaving - - - 148

Jacquard, memoir of, account of his inventions, and

their effects upon the silk-trade of Lyons - 119
Jade-stone vases from China; nature of the material,

mode of working, use, prices, &c. - - 118

Jameson, Mrs., her memoir of Gibson of Rome - 17

Japan porcelain, imitated in the Delft ware - 89

Japanned goods, Birmingham manufacture of - 134
Japuis and Son of Paris, specimens of chintz by - 116
Jerichau of Copenhagen, memoir and notice of bis
works ; his marble group, “ The iluuter and
Panther” - - - - >57

Jerichau, Madame, her paintings - - - 57

Jesse windows (see Stained Class in France).

Jessop, Mr., of Sheffield, his manufacture of plated

goods and Britannia metal - - 99, 129

Jewels, false, employed in Byzantine embroidery - 123
Jewel-case in ivory, by Matifat of Paris - - 21

Jewellery (see Metal-work: Silver).

Jones, Inigo, characteristics of bis architectural de¬
corations - - - - -141

Jones, Owen, bis work on the “ Alhambra ” quoted;

descriptions of Moorish architecture- 15, 136
His application of Moorish perforated domes to

modern purposes - - - - 15

Ilis remarks on Indian decorations of plane sur¬
faces, conventional representations, absence
of shadow, balance of colour, &c. - 32, 152

On the use of colour by the ancients, and by

the Moors - * - 56

Damask table-cover designed by him - - 70

His lecture on “Colour in the Decorative Arts;’’
remarks on the combination of gold with
colours, especially in Indian productions - 72

On the patterns of chintz draperies - - 116

Jouhanneaud and Dubois of Paris, vase in white

china by - - - - 78

Justinian, bis efforts to promote the silk trade - 22

Kent, the architect, bis internal decorations - 141

Kessler of Switzerland, his carvings - 7

Kidderminster Carpets:—Establishment of the

manufacture - - - - 108

Process of weaving - - - - 148

Kilns, ancient, for baking encaustic pavement tiles - 128
Kincobs (see India).

Kiss of Berlin, notices of liis works - - 1,25

Knecht of Paris, niche carved in wood by - - 69

Koechlin, Daniel, his cotton-print works at Mulhausen 26
Kraft, Adam, his carvings in stone - - 9

His sculpture at Nuremberg - - - 49

INDEX.

Labarte, Jules, his account of the royal manufactory

of Sevres - - - - 14, 31

Lace: Nottingham run-lace described; specimen
by Greasley and Hopcroft -
Invention ofthe bobbin-net machine ; successive
improvements; varieties of machines and
products ; statistics of the trade ; specimen
of machine-lace by Birkin - - 102

Hand-made: its history; point-lace revived by

Miss Clarke -

146

Bone or pillow-lace; variety of “grounds;
popularity of Flemish lace; Mrs. I read-
win's exertions to promote the art at
Iloniton - - - " "

Lace-making in Switzerland - - , 44

Lacquer-work from Lahore; description of * lac,

“ lac-dye,” &c. - - - 2

Character of design and ornament - - 32

That of China described; its resemblance to

that of India - - - - 32

Specimen from Cashmere - - - 112

Lacquering (see Metal-work : Brass).

La Fontaine, his works in bronze - - - 13

Lahore (see India).

Lambert, M., of Sevres, his exertions in the revival

of enamelling - - - - 51

Lambeth, potteries first established there - - 89

Lamps, manufacture of, in Paris; recent improve¬
ments - - - - - 139

Lamp, pendant, in Sevres porcelain - - 115

Lamp, by Matifat, Paris - - - - 139

Lamp, by Winfield, Birmingham - 134

Lanfranco of Pesaro, his application of gold to

earthenware - - - - 11

Lanyer, Jerome, his patent for flock-hangings - 95

Lapidaries’ work (see Jade-stone, Florentine Mosaic,
and India).

Laquine of Paris, his works in bronze - - 1

Latten (see Metal-work).

Lattice-work in Moorish architecture - - 34

Leather, Russian embroidery on - - - 20

Leather manufactures of Austria; bookbinding;
book-cover presented by the Emperor to her
Majesty - - - • - 109

Leather-hangings for walls - - - 71

Leavers, John, his lace-making machine - - 102

Lebrun of Paris, chocolate-cup in silver by; notice

of his other works - - - - 113

Lecterns of brass in old churches - - - 94

Lee, William, his invention of the stocking-loom - 22

Lees, R. and Co., specimens of printed mohair,

description of the material and manufacture 64
Lehmann, Caspar, invention of glass-cutting ascribed

to him - - - - - 110

Leighton, J., bookbinding by - - - 96

Leistler and Sons, Vienna, Gothic bookcase by - 109
Bedstead in zebra wood - 158

Leland, his account of Birmingham - - 98

Lenoir, Alexandre, his collection of relics of French

art ----- 51

Lepage-Moutier, Paris, shield and pistols by - 105
Lewis and Allenby, London, silks manufactured for

them - - - - 22, 87

Lienard, M., his wood-carvings - - - 93

Ebony cabinet designed by him - - 155

Limoges, colony of Venetians established there;
influence of Byzantine art on the Limoges
enamels - - - - - 107

Limoges enamels (sec Metal work: Enamels).

Limousin, Leonard, his works in enamel - - 156

Linen fabrics, growth and preparation of flax, spin¬
ning and weaving, damask table-covers by

Beveridge of Dunfermline

Linen cloths, painted in water-colours, anciently

used as mural decorations - - - 71

Linton, W., on water-colours in the Great Exhibi¬
tion - - - - - 131

Lockett, his improved mode of engraving cylinders

for cotton-printing - - - - 120

Lombardy, the early sculptors of - - - 50

Lombe, Sir Thomas, his improvements in silk¬
throwing - - - - - 22

Longman and Broderip, their improvements in

pianofortes - - - . - 59

Looking-glass frame carved in ebony, from China 54
Loom (see Jacquard-loom, Lace, &c.).

Lower, M. A., on the ancient iron-works of Sussex 99
Lusson, M., Paris, stained glass by him - - 114

Luynes, the Due do, his patronage of Froment-
Meurice, Vechte, Carl Wagner, &-c.

93,105,111,137,145

Lyons silk (see franco).

Macquer, his application ofthe china-clay of St. Yreix
to the production of Sevres hard porcelain - 31

IBs approval of the Chelsea porcelain - 97

Mader, Freres, their specimens of paper-hanging - 100
Madrid (see Spain).

Magni, Pietro, of Milan, his group in marble, “The

First Step” - . . - 37

Magnus, Mr., his enamelled slate in imitation of

Florentine mosaic - - - - 103

Mahogany, introduced by Dr. Gibbons - - 150

Majolica ware, its history; revived manufacture by

Minton - _ . 11 97

Malvern, Great, number of pavement tiles in the

church ; ancient kiln for baking them - 128
Manchester cotton-works; improved designs - 26

Mansard, M., vases in Beauvais ware - - 6

Manuscripts, old English, their elaborate bindings

and illuminations - - _ -ioq ion

Collected by Edward IV. - . .’143

Indian and Byzantine (see Byzantium, India,
and Illuminated Manuscripts).

March of Theiergartenfelde, near Ckarlottenber*

his fountain in terra-cotta - _ 45

Marochetti, the Baron, memoir of; notice of his
“ Richard Cceur de Lion ” and other works
in sculpture - _ . - 33

Furniture designed by him for Snell - "125

Marquetry:— .

Its origin in Florence, notices of ancient speci¬
mens; practised in France; its history jn
England; modern practice - - 75,150

Specimens by Messrs. Trollope - - 75

(and see Florentine Mosaic).

Marrel, Freres, silversmiths’ work by them - 153

Mathevon and Buvard, of Lyons, silk by; their

former exhibited works - - - 119

Matifat, a pupil of Vechte, his ivory casket and

other artistic productions - -21, 139

Medals and coins, Birmingham manufacture of - 134

Mediaeval antiquities and imitations :—

Jewellery; historical sketch of - 66 , 82

Earthenware, found at Lincoln - - 81

Drinking-vessels of different materials - 81

Carpet, designed by Pugin - - - 1 ° 8

Stove, designed by Pugin for Hardman, of

Birmingham - - * " 106

Wall decorations (see Paper-hanging).

Meissen, porcelain manufacture of
Mktal-work :—

Bronze :—Casting in Prussia - - - 1

Panels by Gcerts of Antwerp - - - 9

Group by Vittoz of Paris; history of bronze

casting in France - - - - 13

Rauch’s statues of Frederick the Great,

Bliicher, Albert Durer, &c. - - 25

Marochetti’s statue of Wellington, at Glasgow 33
Statue of Justus Moser at Osnabriick, by

Drake of Berlin - - - 49

Composition of bronze in ancient and modern

times - - - - * 77

“A Youth at a Stream,” by Foley, cast by

Hatfield - - - - 77

Bronzes and other mixed metals in China;
vases inlaid with silver wire, bells, gongs,
vessels of white copper, &c. - - 85

Bronze employed for weapons by the ancient

Britons - - - - - 94

Gold, Silver, Jewellery, and Enamels :—

Gold enamelled vase, by Wathcrston and
Brogden; value of gold and silver; works
on the subject by Mr. Watherston - 66

Gold-thread in Indian woven fabrics, its manu¬
facture - - - - - 12

Cloth of gold, admired by the ancients; kincobs
of modern India; principles regulating
the combination of gold with colours - 72

Silver mediaeval plate; the two-handled chalice;
remarks of Theophilus; various forms of
chalices and patens; specimens described
in ancient inventions - - - 41

Repousse work described; Caradosso’s pro¬
cesses - - - - - 137

Abundance of plate in England in the 17th

century - - - - - 89

Its arrangement on “ cupboards” - - 125

Redgrave on the theory of its ornamentation;
adaptation of design to material; repousse
and chasing; works of Vechte and AYagner 111
Silver vases by Hunt and Roskell - 27, 144

Silver shield (of Milton, Shakspere, and New¬
ton) by A T echte, for Hunt and Roskell - 117
Decorations of ancient and mediteval shields

and salvers - - - - 117

Plate by Messrs. Garrard, London; notice of
their works; processes of repousse, casting,
stamping, piercing, finishing, polishing, &c. 46

Specimens by Gough of Birmingham - - 98

History of the trade of Birmingham - - 98

Silver centre-piece by Wagner of Berlin; his

reasons for oxydising the metal - - 35

Eminent Prussian artists; Prussian jewellery

and enamels - - - - 35

Silver shield by Cornelius, presented to the
Prince of AVales by the King of Prussia,
described; memoir and works of Cornelius 73
Chocolate cup in silver, by Lebrun of Paris - 113
History of gold and silversmith’s work in France 113
History of jewellery in France, continued;
present state of the trade in Paris; imita¬
tive gems - 153

Memoir of Froment-Meurice of Paris, and ac¬
count of his principal works - 93, 137

Jewellery, enamel, and niello works of the late

Carl Wagner; jewellery by Rudolphi - 111
English jewellery and enamels; in the Saxon,
Norman, and subsequent eras ; great seals,
monumental effigies, shrines, rings, and
designs by Holbein - - - 66

Remains found in barrows; torques, fibulae,
and enamels; Irish, Anglo-Saxon, and
mediseval specimens - - - 82

Jewellery in the mediaeval style, by Hardman 82
Jewellery of India, lapidaries’ wheel; processes,

&c., of native gold and silversmiths - 40

Silversmiths’ work by Marrel, Paris - - 153

Damascening :—History and processes - - 151

Enamels :—History of the art; filagree or cloi¬
sonne enamel of Byzantium; the Alfred
jewel; the palliotto of St. Mark’s, Venice;
collections of MM. Lenoir and Somtnerard;
revival of the art at Sevres; processes
employed - - . - 51

Painted and translucent enamels by Morel, for
AA'ebb of London - - - 107

Champleve enamels of Limoges; influence of
Byzantine art - - . .

Late’Limoges; translucid on relief, in Italy,
France, and England - . - 145

Specimens by Morel and Froment-Meurice 137,145
Chinese enamels; introduction and practice of
the art in China .

Enamels on ancient arms and armour - - 101

Specimens from Indian arms - 124 135
Indian processes .- 2

Description'ofthe French school; “grisaille” °
and modern specimens; vase by Hunt and
Roskell - . . . 156

Metai.-wouk ( cant .) :—

Electrotype :— Origin and progress of the art; its
principles; rival claims to the discovery;
its application by Messrs. Elkington;
group of objects by them ^ - - 79

Processes; copy of a shield by A eclite - 138

Iron :—

Its early use in England - - - 19

Ancient iron-works in Sussex - - 99

Fountain and gates by the Coalbrook Dale
Company ; history of the Company ; sand

casting

Iron-casting in France; fountain by Andre;
works of Calla; principles applicable to
works in iron - - - - 39

Andirons and fire-backs - 121

Steel :—

Spanish, its excellence in the middle ages - 3

Moorish, Spanish, and other fire-arms - 3, 8

Hunting-knife, by Zuloaga of Madrid - 3

Historical notices of arms and armour; Negroli
of Milan, Andrea di Ferrara, Cellini, Al¬
bert Durer, &c. ; daggers and sheaths, by
Wostenholm and Son of Sheffield - 101
Sheffield, general history of the town and its

trade - - - - - 99

Steel and cutlery manufactures of Sheffield de¬
scribed ; converting works; “ shear steel;”
tilt works; “cast steel;” rolling mills;
grinding wheels; grinders’ asthma - 122
“ Home stove” and fender, by Stuart and

Smith - - - - 121, 122

Sheffield cast steel compared with that of India 124
Plated goods of Sheffield, history and processes ;
“solid silver edges;” Britannia metal de¬
scribed - - - - - 129

Indian steel or wootz; antiquity, perfection,

and process of manufacture - - 124

Brass, &’C .:—

Birmingham manufactures - - - 134

Shield and pistols, by Lepage-Moutier of Paris 105
“Brass toy trade;” Mr. AV infield's works; bed¬
stead by him; application of forms to
materials; processes of moulding, casting,
chasing, finishing, lacquering, &c. 43, 98

Panel, cast by Bailey and Co.; history ofthe

use of mixed metals in England - - 94

Buhl panel by Fourdinois of Paris ; process of

inlaying described ... 126

Mezzo-relievo (see Sculpture).

Milanese sculpture in the Great Exhibition ; works
of Magni, Fraccaroli, Strazza, Motelli, and
Monti - - - - - 37

Milanese arms and armour - - 3,117

Milton, Shakspere, and Newton; shield by Vechte 117
Mind, of Switzerland, his carvings - - 7

Minton and Co.:—Their productions; origin and pro¬
gress of their establishment; Majolica
vases, &c. - - - 11,97

Vase and dish in parian - - - 58

Della Robbia friezes - - - - 67

Dessert service, presented by the Queen to the

Emperor of Austria - - - 89

Terra-cotta figure of Galatea - - - 97

Encaustic tiles .... 128

Misericorde (see Arms and Armour).

Mohair; raw material and manufacture described;
spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing, and
printing; exportation; varieties of goods;

“ Portieres,” by Lees and Co. - - 64

Monograms on Sevres porcelain - - - 14

Moorish Art:—

Architecture described by Swinburne, Murphy,

De la Borde and Owen Jones; his work
on the “Alhambra;” remarks of Hope
and de Prangey - - - - 136

Perforated stone domes and windows; speci¬
men from Tunis; preservation of ancient
patterns - - . . - 15

Perforated gun stand - - - - 34

Mahommedan architecture of India - - 88

Steel of Damascus and Mossoul - 3

Fire-arms - - - . - 8

Embroidery, its presumed origin in Persia - 4

The art practised in India only by Mahom-
medans; principles regulating their em¬
ployment of colour - - - 56

Mohammedan and modern Indian illuminated
MSS.; their resemblance to Byzantine
types - - - - 68

Harmonious union of gold and colour - 72

Use of glazed tiles by the Moors in Spain - 106

Moorshedabad, presents to Her Majesty from - 16

Its trade in silk - 1 . - 16

Morel, notice of his career, enamelled vase and dish,

and other objects, executed by him 107,’ 145
Mortlake tapestry works - 42 108

Mosaics:—Byzantine - - . -72

Florentine; history ol the art; imitations by

AVoodrutF of Bakewell - - - 103

Mulhausen, cotton printing at - - - 26

Muller, on conventionality in art - - 112

Munich (see Bavaria).

Murano, glass works at (see Venice).

Musical instruments (see Pianofortes).

Muslins (see Cotton, France, and India).

Myers, G., altar and reredos by him - - 142

Naylor, AV., objects in glass by - . - 110

Needlework (see Embroidery).

Negroli of Milan, a famous armourer - - 101

Nephrite, or jade-stone (see Jade-stone).

Nollekens, peculiarities of his style of sculpture - 53
Nottingham lace, adulterated by the manufacturers;

run-lace; trade and processes described - 30
In' tuition ol the bobbin-net machine; successive
improvements; statistics of the trade and
manufacture - . . - 102

Nuremberg, sculpture of the fourteenth and six¬
teenth centuries in - . . - 49

INDEX.

Orfreys (see Embroidery).

Osier, F. & C., their glass works; Crystal Fountain - 23

Painted cloths used before paper-hangings, mottoes

upon them - - . . - 71

Paisley, history of its trade ; the shawl manufacture ;

shawl borders by J. and A. Roxburgh 2(1, 92
Palissy, Bernard de, his experiments and discoveries 31
Stained glass at Ecouen, executed by him from
the designs of Raphael - - - 114

Palissy ware revived in France - - - 6

Palliotto, or altar frontal of St. Mark’s, Venice; a

specimen of cloisonne enamel - - 51

Paper made from waste cotton - - - 116

Paper trade of Ahmedabad - - - 24

Paperhanging:—Textile fabrics formerly used as
hangings for walls ; plain ; embroidered;
woven in patterns; Flemish tapestry, or
arras; old English specimens; manufacture
at Mortlake ; gobelin tapestry - 42, 90

Old painted cloths, embossed leather, &c. - 71

1* lock-papers ; block-printing; works of Jack-
son, Echarts, Sherringham, Harwood,
Clarke, Clarke and Henderson, &c. - 95

Specimens by Hinchliffe, Wool lams and Co.,
and Townsend and Parker - 42, 71, 95

History of, in France; competition with Eng¬
land ; specimens by Mader, Frferes, of Paris 100
Papier-mache, its introduction; supersedes hand¬
work stucco in decoration ; works of Jackson,
Bielefeld, Jennens and Bettridge, &c. 65, 134
Paris (see France).

Parian (see Earthenware).

Parquetry, or inlaid flooring - - - 75

Patens (see Chalices and Patens).

Paton, Waller, damask table-cover designed by him 70
Pavement i;; encaustic tiles by Minton; mediaeval

tiles - - - - - 128

Payne, Roger, his skill and taste in bookbinding - 96

Pellatt, Apsley, objects in glass by him; his “ Cu¬
riosities of Glass-making ” - - 18,110

Ilis remarks on the influence of oxygen upon

the colour of flint-glass - - - 23

Peg tankard at Wardour Castle - - - 81

Percier, style of his works in bronze - - 13

Perkins, his principle of multiplying steel plates;

its application to cotton-printing - - 120

Perrot, M., inventor of the perrotine for cotton¬
printing .... 26, 120

Persia, its ancient commerce with India - 104, 140

Splendour of its illuminated MSS. - - 68

Use of perforated stone-windows - - 15

Persian carpets (see Carpets).

Perugia, facade of San Bernardino, by Agostino

della Robbia - - - - 67

Phidias, his colossal statues in ivory - - 21

Philostratus, his allusion to the art of enamel

Phoenicia, its ancient commerce with India - 104, 140

Pianofortes: history of stringed instruments; the

virginal, dulcimer, harpsichord, piano-forte,&c. 59
Extent of Messrs. Broadwood’s manufacture;
improvements made by them; Erard’s
“ repetition action ” - - - 83

Pianos by Collard and Collard - - 59

Ornaments from a piano by Broadwoods’ - 83
Pilaster in carton-pierre, by Cruchet of Paris - 65

Pillow Lace described - 154

Pisa, Nicola and Giovanni di, influence oftheir works

on art in Italy - - - - 50

Enamels by the latter - - - - 145

Pistols (sec Arms).

Pitts, his design for the buckler of Eneas - - 117

Plated goods (see Sheffield),
riush (sec Mohair).

Pole, Mr., his notes on the Musical instruments in

the Great Exhibition - - - 59

Pollaiuolo, his productions in enamel - - 145

Point-lace (see Lace).

Porcelain, history of, in England - - 89, 147

Works at Fulham, Chelsea, Bow, Derby, Wor¬
cester, &c.; mania for Oriental porcelain
in the reign of Anne - - - 97

Recent improvements in the art - - 115

Dessert service by Minton, presented by the

Queen to the Emperor of Austria 89, 147
History of the art in France; Old Sevres, or

pate-tendre; vase, “ La Gloire ” - - 14

Hard porcelain, or pate-dure ; improvements of
Bottcher - - - - - 31

Pendant lamp from Sevres ; materials and pro¬
cesses described - - - - 115

China-clay discovered by Sclmorr; Meissen

works; Vienna imperial manufactory - 31

Vase in white china, by Jouhanneaud and
Dubois of Paris - - - - 78

General h istory of pottery and porcelain in France 7 S
Stove, by Hoffman of Berlin - - - 55

Portieres in printed mohair, by Lees and Co. - 64

Potteries, the (see Earthenware).

Potteries of f Le Roman era in England - - 81

“Potters’ muks,” or makers’ names, on Roman

pottery - - - - - 81

Pradier, his works in marble - - - 93

Prignot, Eugene, carpets and sideboard designed by

him for Jackson and Graham - 132, 143

Primaticcio, his designs for carvings at Fon¬
tainebleau - - - - - 69

Prince of Wales’s shield, designed by Cornelius,

described - - - • - 35

Principles of Art :

Sculpture :—Difficulty attending colossal works;

Marochetti’s Cceur de Lion - - 33

Adaptation of subjects to dimensions ; minutiae

of detail to size and material - ' 9

Study involved in simple composition ; Drake s

“ Pleasures of Public Gardens ” - - 49

Importance of originality in art; evils of a too

constant reproduction of the antique - ' 9

Style of composition suited to different degrees
of relievo - - - - 133

Principles of Art ( cont .)

Surface decoration :—Application of ornament to
spaces, flatness, ground, anti pattern ; out¬
line and colour; conventional forms illus¬
trated by Indian lac-work 4, 12, 32, 112

Harmony of colour, its application to advancing
and receding surfaces illustrated in Indian
works - - . . 36, 152

Mr. French’s pamphlet “ On the Arrangement
of Colours in Ancient Decorative Art” - 47
Combination of gold and colours, especially in

Indian kincobs ; remarks by Owen Jones- 72
Owen Jones on the employment of colour by
the ancients and the Moors, as illustrated
by Indian embroidery - - - 56

Metal-icork :—Silver vase, by Hunt and Roskell 27
V agner’s reasons for oxydising works in silver 35
Red- jrave on ornamentation, repousse, and

chasing; adaptation of design to material 111
Forms and ornaments adapted for cast-iron 39, 43
Ceramic art, its forms and decoration - 14, 58

Objects in glass - - - - - 18

Textile, fabrics :—Lace and embroidery - - 30

Patterns of chintz draperies - - - 116

Printing of cotton, woollen, and mohair goods, its

introduction and extensive application 64, 116
A arious processes described ... 120
Printed muslins, by Depouilly of Paris - - 26

Printed paper-hangings (see Paper-hangings).

Printed patterns on lace for embroidering - - 30

Printed table-covers by Wood and Co. - - 91

by Evans and Co. - - 120

Prussia:—

Monument of Frederick William III., relievos
from its pedestal, by Drake of Berlin;
subject, “ The Pleasures of Public Gardens” 49
Bronze casting in - - - - l

Shield by Cornelius, presented to the Prince of

Wales; memoir of the artist - - 73

Prussian artists in metal, jewellery and enamels 35
Centre piece in silver, by Wagner; works of
the Messrs. Wagner - - - 35

Modern use of terra-cotta; revived manufac¬
ture promoted by Scliinkel; fountain by
March of Chariottenberg - - 45

Ordinary form and action of German stoves;
improvement in tiles; stove in white porce¬
lain, by Hoffman - - - 55

Old German glass in the Royal Collection of
Arts - - - - - 38

Pugin, the late A. W., memoir of; his remarks on
ancient carved roofs and screens; his de¬
signs; jewellery; cabinet; mediajval stove
and carpet; altar and reredos 62, 82, 90, 106,

108, 142

Raphael, his designs for the stalls at Perugia; for

stained glass at Ecouen - - 50,114

Rauch of Berlin, memoir and notice of his works;

his statue of “ Victory ” - - 1, 5, 25

Redgrave, R., R.A., his remarks on ornamentation

in the precious metals - - - 111

Relics of saints inclosed in monastic book covers - 109
Relievo (see Sculpture).

Renaissance art:—sculpture in Germany - - 49

Decoration in France - - - - 65

Decoration in England - - - 141

Wood-carving in France - - - 69

Stained glass windows - - 86,114

Shields and bucklers, imitated by Vechte - 117
Ribbon trade and manufacture of Coventry. Its
history and present state; “the Coventry

Ribbon”.60

Of France,history of; specimen from St. Etienne 60
Of Ahmedabad - - - - 24

“ Richard Cocur de Lion,” a statue by Marochetti - 33

Ilichborough, remains of Roman pottery - - 81

Reitschel of Dresden, biographical notice of; the
“ Christ Child,” and “ Cupid and Panther,”
bassi-relievi by him - - 5, 92

Riocreux, M., his history of Sevres porcelain - 115
Ringuet lc Prince, Paris, his establishment and

works - - - - 155

Roberts, Air., Sheffield, his invention of “solid silver

edges” and other improvements - - 99, 129

Rogers, W. G., his wood-carvings; boxwood cradle

for Her Majesty, designed by W. II. Rogers 130
Rome, ancient use of silken robes and cloth of

gold - - - 22, 72

Roman art, sculpture in ivory - - * 21

Roman pottery in Britain - - * - 81

Roman jewellery in Britain - - - 82

Roofs (see Wood-carving).

Rouen (see France).

Roxburgh, J. and A., Paisley shawl borders by - 92

Royle, Dr., his writings; on the antiquity of Indian

art and commerce - * 72, 104

On Indian steel and enamels - - 124, 152

Rudolphi, M., of Paris, his works in the precious

metals; specimens of jewellery by him - 111
Run-lace (see Lace).

Rushes employed to cover floors; ceremony ot

“rush-bearing” - * * 198

Russian embroidery, processes; its resemblance to

that of Byzantium - 20

Russian paper-hangings - - - - 100

Saddle-cover, Indian - - - ■ 194

St. Cloud, manufactory of porcelain at - - 14

St. Eloi, his works in the precious metals; monastery

for artist-monks established by him - 113

St. Etienne, specimen of ribbons from - - 60

St. Pancras Church, its ornamental details in terra¬
cotta - - - ■ "4

St. Paul’s Cathedral: cast-iron railing - - 99

Gibbons’ carvings - - - - 130

St. Yreix, china-clay discovered there - - 31

Salt-cellars, by Elkington and Mason - - 79

By Froment-Meurice - - 93

Salvers, with designs originally intended for

shields.U7

Samian ware described ; specimens found at Rich-

borough, &c. - - - - 81

Sansovino, influence of his works on Italian art - 50

Saracenic art (see Moorish Art).

Saxony : porcelain works at Dresden and Meissen ;

Bottcher’s improvements - - - 14

China clay discovered by Sclmorr - - 31

Schadow of Berlin, sculptor, his works - - 1

Schafer, Johann, of Nuremberg, his paintings on

German glass vessels - - - 38

Schinkel, of Berlin, his works - - - 5

His employment of terra-cotta architecturally - 45

Advocates the use of zinc as a substitute for
bronze - - - - - 1

Sclmorr, Jean, his discovery of china clay and manu¬
facture of porcelain at Dresden - - 14

Schonhofer, Sebald, his works in sculpture at Nu¬
remberg - - - - - 49

Schools of Design:—

London; Table-covers, designed by Miss A.

Cary, a pupil - - - - 91

The Potteries; its effect; works of the artists 11, 89, 97
Birmingham ; Designs by a pupil, for Elking¬
ton and Mason - - - 79

Coventry; Its success - - - 60

Nottingham ; Its beneficial effects - - 102

Paisley; Designs for shawl patterns - 92

Drawing Academy at Dunfermline - - 70

Schools founded by Andre at his iron-works
in France - - - - - 39

At Athens - - - - - 76

Schwanthaler, his design for a shield of Hercules - 117
Scinde (see India).

Screens, Stalls, &c. (see Wood-carving).

Sculpture:—

Dr. Kiigler on contending influences: the an¬
tique, the natural, and the romantic - 25

Scales adapted to different styles, imitation of
details - - - - - 37

Varieties of relief and style of composition
suited to each; alto-relievo, mezzo-relievo,
basso-relievo, bassissitno-relievo; remarks
of Sir C. Eastlake - - - 133

Of Ancient Greece, chryselephantine art - 21
Its history in Italy, to the cinque-cento period 50
English school, its characteristics, sketch of its
history ; works of Gibbons, Cibber, Rou¬
biliac, Wilton, Banks, Nollekcns, Bacon,

Mrs. Darner - - - - 53

“The Hunter," by Gibson of Rome; adaptation
of actual incidents; life and works ofGibson 17
“The Hours leading forth the Horses of the

Sun,” by Gibson - - - - 133

“ A Youth at a Stream,” by Foley - - 77

“ Andromeda," and other works, by Bell - 53

“ Richard Cocur de Lion,” and other works, by
Marochetti; difficulty attending colossal
designs - - - - - 33

Memoir of Mr. John Thomas; his works at

the Houses of Parliament, &c. - - 63

“The First Cradle,” by De Bay; memoir of
the artist - - - - -61

“ The First Step,” by Magni - - - 37

Works of Milanese artists in Great Exhibition 37
“ The Amazon,” by Kiss - - - 1

“ Victory," by Rauch - - - 25

Sketch of the history of sculpture in Germany;

its recent progress - - - 49

“The Pleasures of Public Gardens,” basso-

relievos by Drake - - - 49

Study necessary for apparently simple groups 49
“ The Christ-Child,” and “Cupid and Panther,”

bas-reliefs by Rietschel - - 5, 29

“The Hunter and Panther," by Jerichau ; me¬
moir of the artist - - - - 57

Seasoning of wood for furniture, Mr. Snell’s plan - 125
Sevres porcelain; history of the manufacture; old
Sevres ; colours used ; ornament ; artists
employed ; monograms, &c. - - 14

Guettard’s discovery of kaolin ; a superior kind
found at St. Yreix; its adoption by Mae-
quer for hard porcelain - - - 31

Materials and processes described - - 115

Sevres museum ; English specimens exhibited there 115
Sevres enamels (see Metal-work).

Semper, Gottfried; his theatre at Dresden - 5

Shakspere, Milton, and Newton shield, by Vechte 117
Shawls (see Cashmere and Paisley Shawls).

Shear Steel (see Metal-work : Steel).

Sheffield ; general history of the town and its trade 99
Daggers and sheaths, by Wostenholm and Son 101
“ Home-stove” and fender, by Stuart and
Smith - 121, 122

Steel manufacture described ; converting-works,
tilt-works, casting-furnaces, rolling-mills,
cutlery, grinding-wheels, grinders’ asthma 122
History and processes of the manufacture of

plated goods and Britannia metal - - 129

Sherringham, Mr., his improvements in paper-

hangings - - - - 71, 95

Shields, ancient; their decorations; mediaeval and
renaissance shields; modern imitations; Flax-
man, Schwanthaler, Vechte - - 117

Shield presented to the Prince of Wales by the King

of Prussia - - - - - 73

Shield in iron, by Lepage Moutier, of Paris - 105

Shield of the Amazons, executed by Carl Wagner

lor the King of Prussia - - - 111

Shields in silver, by Vechte - - 117, 138

(and see Arms.)

Shrines, ancient specimens in France - - 113

Sicily; silk-weaving in the twelfth century; robes

of the Sicilian kings - - 22,123

Siena cathedral, Florentine mosaic pavement - 103
Silbermann, of Frey burg, his “forte-pianos” - 59

Silesia, glass-works in - - - - 38

Silk-manufacture; its progress from Byzantium to
Sicily, Italy, Spain, Flanders, England, and
France; improvements of Sir T. Lombe;
introduction of Jacquard loom - - 22

INDEX.

103

131

- 3

- 8
- 8

- 22

- 146

- 106

- 116

Silk-manufacture ( emit .) :—

Conversion into yarn ; plain and figure weav¬
ing ; loom described - * *

Weaving established in Sicily in the twelfth
century - - ' ‘

Brocades of Spitalfields manufacture - 24,

Fluctuations and present state of the trade
of Lyons; memoir of Jacquard; history
of his inventions; effects of the Jacquard
loom -

Specimen by Matbevon and Buvard - *

Manufactory at Athens - - " ‘ *

Trade of India - - " iD

Carpets from India - * " “

(see also Ribbon-trade, Coventry, and St.
Etienne.)

Silver (see Mctal-work).

Skidmore of Coventry, his specimens of church-plate
Slate, enamelled, by Magnus

Sliegh, Mr., his works in lithography, Ins decoration
° of a box of water-colours -
Snell, Mr., his establishment, his process of season¬
ing wood ; furniture designed by Marochetti,

&c - - - - - 125, 150

Society of Arts, its exhibitions the precursors of the

Great Exhibition of 1851 - - 46,71,89

Lectures on the results of the Exhibition, 72,116,124
Sober, M., his Sevres enamels - - - 93

Solignac, near Limoges, monastery for artist-monks,

especially goldsmiths, established by St. Eloi 113
Sommerard, M., his collection of enamels at the
Hotel Clugny, Paris
Spain :—

Hunting-knife and sheath, by Zuloaga,

Madrid -

Fire-arms of Moors and Spaniards
Arms and other relics of the Armada -
Silk manufacture -

Point-lace -

Glazed tiles at the Alhambra -
Decoration of the Queen’s cabinet at Aranjuez 136
Spencer, Thomas, his invention of the electrotype
process - - - -

Spinning machines; inventions of Wyatt, Paul,
Arkwright, Hargreaves, Crompton, &c
(see also Cotton, India, Linen, Mohair,

Silk, &c.)

Spitalfields silks, history of the manufacture, and
specimens -

Spode, Messrs, their improvements in porcelain
Spremont, director of the Chelsea porcelain works -
Staffordshire, the Potteries (see Earthenware and
Porcelain).

Stained glass (see Glass).

Steel (see Metal-work : Steel).

Stevens, Alfred, his designs for stoves, by IIoolc,

Robson, and lloolc, of Sheffield - 99, 129

For daggers for Wostenholm and Son, Sheffield 101
Stoddart, his improvements in pianofortes - - 59

Stourbridge, glass manufacture at - - - 18

Stourbridge clay crucibles; their use in casting

glass - - - - - 43

Stone carving in Holland and Belgium - - 9

Stoves and grates; early history of in England;

chimneys and andirons, modern improvements 121
Hot-air and other stoves, by Iloole, Robson,
and Iloole, Sheffield - - 99,

Mediaeval stove, designed by Pugin
German, their form and materials, improve¬
ments in construction and decoration
Ancient German specimens, made of glazed
tiles; use of tiles by the Moors
Stratford-le-Bow, Elizabethan ware probably made
there - - - - -

Stuart and Smith, “ I lome Stove” and fender by, 121, 122
Stucco decorations in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries -

Suger, Abbot of St. Denis, his works in the precious
metals -

Windows of his abbey church
Surface decoration (see Principles of Art).

Sussex, ancient iron works in
Swiss Embroidery -

Switzerland, escrutoire by Wettli of Berne; trade
in fancy carving; works of Mind; Vogel
and Kessler - - _ .7

Swords (see Arms).

Tables (see Furniture).

Table-covers, printed, by Wood and Co. - - 91

By Evans and Co. - - - - 120

Tapestry, for mural decoration ; of Flemish origin ;

old English specimens; subjects and prices •
cloths of gold and silver; “ baudekin; ”

147

129

106

113

114

144

157

113
71

114
123

- 63

tapestries of Wolsey and Charles I.; English
manufactories at Mortlake, &c., Gobelin
tapestry - 42, 150

Tapestry used for covering floors - - 108

(and see Furniture.)

Tavernier, his account of Dacca muslins - -157

Taylor, James, his “Account of the Cotton Manu¬
facture of Dacca ” - - 48, 56,

Terra-cotta:—Works of Luca and Agostino della
liobbia - - - - 11 j

Its extensive use in Berlin; in ancient Greece,
in Etruria, and in the middle ages; in
German)' revived manufacture promoted by
Schinkel; fountain by March, of Charlot-
tenberg -

Used for stoves in Germany - - ■

History of its use in England -
Vase designed by J. Thomas for E. L. Betts -
Figure of Galatea by Minton -
Textile fabrics (see Cotton, Silk, Embroidery,
India, &c.)

Theophilus, his account of ancient chalices, &c. 41,

Of ancient wall-paintings - - *

Of stained-glass windows in France
Of the use of false gems in Byzantium
Theory of art (see Principles of Art).

Thomas, John, memoir and notice of his works

Side of a room, and vase in terra-cotta designed
by him - - - - 63,74

Decoration of a pianoforte carved by him - 83

Thomire, M., French bronzes produced at his esta¬
blishment - - - - - 13

Thorwaldsen, his association with Gibson, Rauch,

and Jerichau - - - 17, 25, 57

Tiles, glazed, used for German stoves; their use in
Germany and by the Moors in Spain; ap¬
plied to stoves, &c. by Minton - 55, 106

Encaustic pavement by Minton; history of their

use and manufacture in England - 128

Timber roofs (see Wood-carving).

Toledo blades - - - - - 3

Townsend and Parker, paper-hanging by - - 95

Treadwin, Mrs., her account of the lace trade of

Honiton - - - - - 154

Trentanove of Rome, candelabrum by - - 50

Triptychs, carved, in French churches - - 69

Triqueti, M. de, his works in bronze and other

metals - - - - - 93

Trollope, Messrs., their specimens of marquetry

furniture, materials, mode of execution - 75
Tschudi, the predecessor of Broadwood and Sons;

his harpsichords -
Tunis, objects from :—Embroidery
Window ornament -
Ornamental gun-stand -

Turin, Marochetti’s statue of Emanuel Philibert
Turkey, its productions :—Embroidery, silk and cot-

ton goods

Angora wool; manufacture of mohair
Carpets (see Carpets).

Turpin, Jean, his carved stalls at Amiens -

Urbino, Duchy of, seat of the Majolica manufacture 11

Vandenbrand, marquetry executed by him for

Messrs. Trollope - - - - 75

Manner and Son, Spitalfields; silks woven by them 22
Vechtc, Antoine, memoir and notice of his works,
his imitations of Renaissance shields; his
pupils; shields and vase executed by him
for Hunt and lioskell; shield for Lepage
Moutier ; shield, “ The Battle of the Ama¬
zons” copied in electrotype 27, 93,105,111,117,138
Meit-Stoss, his wood and stone carvings at Nurem¬
berg, &c. - - - 9, 49

Venice :—Its commerce with India - - 149

Influence of Byzantine art on its productions - 107
Its trade in the rich garments of Constanti¬
nople - - - - - 123

Glass, history and processes of the manufacture 110
Its early importation into England
Imitations in Germany -

Point-lace - -

Paliotto or altar frontal of St. Mark’s
^ ienna. the imperial porcelain manufactory
“ Victory,” a statue by Rauch, of Berlin -
\ ittoz, of Paris, bronze group by -
Vischer, Peter, and his sons; their carvings in

stone - - - . 9 49

Vogel, of Switzerland, his carvings - 7

Voisinlieu, “ Beauvais ware” produced there - 6

V agner and Son, jewellers and silversmiths to the

King of Prussia ; notice of their works - 35

146

111

Wagner, Albert, of Berlin; his centrepiece in silver
described ; reasons for oxidising the metal 35,
Wagner, Carl, his works in the precious metals ; his
sudden death -

Wailcs, stained glass by -

Wales, Prince of, shield presented to him by the
King of Prussia - - -

Wallis of Louth, wood-carving by
Water-colours anciently applied to linen cloths for
mural decorations -
Water-colours; those of the late Rudolph Ackcr-
mann and his successors; their ingredients;
new specimens in the Great Exhibition - 131
Watherston and Brogden, gold vase, jewelled and
enamelled; other productions of the firm;

Mr. Watherston’s publications on the value of
gold and silver - - - - 66

Watson, Bell, and Co., their importation of Indian

and manufacture of Axminster carpets - 148

Weaving:—Of Spitalfields silk, its history - 22

Indian loom described - - - 24

Origin and improvements in the ribbon loom - 60

Cotton weaving - - - - 116

Mohair, process described ... 64

Linen; damask table-covers - - - 70

Carpets .... 132, 148

Lace - - - - 102, 154

Paisley shawls - - - - 92

Wedgwood, Josiah, notice of his works - - 147

Wellington statue by Marochetti at Glasgow - 33

West, Benjamin, models by him in terra-cotta - 74

Wettli of Berne, escrutoire in white wood - 7

Whytock’s patent tapestry - - - 148

Wilton, sculptor, character of his works - - 53

Wilton, carpet manufacture at - - 108,132

Process of weaving - 148

Window ornament from Tunis; windows of per¬
forated stone in ancient edifices - 15

Windows:—Of Chinese dwellings -

History of stained glass in England
In France -

Winfield, of Birmingham, his establishment and
productions; processes employed in the brass
trade - 43,

Winston, Mr., his remarks on ancient and modern

, 34
54
86

114

134

,49

stained glass

Wohlgemuth, his carvings at Zurickauand Nurem¬
berg .... 9

Wolsey, Cardinal, his valuable tapestries and other
hangings -

Wood-carving :—Its early history in England; tim¬
ber-framed roofs, screens, stalls, doors, bench-
ends, &c. - - - - - 62

Group of flowers and birds by 'Wallis of Louth 62
In old English domestic buildings; memoir and
works of Grinling Gibbons, Selden and
Watson, his assistants; Mowatt, Chippen¬
dale, Wilton, &c. - - - - 130

Boxwood cradle carved by Rogers for her

Majesty - - - - - 130

In France, its history - - - - 69

Niche by Knechts of Paris - - - 69

In Germany, works of Kraft, 'Wohlgemuth,

Vischer, Veit-Stoss, Albert Durer - 9

Escrutoire by Wettli of Berne ; Swiss carvings

generally - - - - - 7

Lattice-work in Moorish art; perforated gun-

stand from Tunis - - - 34

(see also Furniture.)

Woodruff 1 , of Bakewell, his imitations of Florentine

mosaic - - - - - 103

Woollams and Co. specimen of paper-hanging - 71

Woollen manufactures:—History and processes - 91

Colour-printing, dyes, mordants, dischargers,
and resists - - - - 91

Printing process described - - - 120

Indian woollen goods - - - - 12

Wootz, or Indian steel; its excellence ; history and

process of the manufacture - - - 124

Worcester porcelain works - - - 97

Worsted manufactures (see Paisley Shawls).
Wostenholm and Son, of Sheffield, daggers and

sheaths by - - - - . 101

Wyatt, J. R. his “Shepherd Boy,” produced in

statuary porcelain by Copeland - - 58

“ Youth at a Stream,” statue by Foley, cast in

bronze by Hatfield - - - - 77

Zeigler, his invention of Beauvais ware - - 6

Zinc, group of “ the Amazon” by Kiss - - 1

Zuber, Jean, ot Rixhcim, on French paper-hangings,

productions of his establishment - - 100

Zuloaga of Madrid, hunting-knife by him - - 3

CLASSIFIED LIST OF SUBJECTS.

SECTION I—SCULPTURE.

No. OF
1'l.ATE,

The Hunter

. By Gibson, R.A.

133

The Hours leading forth the

Horses

of the Sun

. Gibson, R.A.

Andromeda . .

. John Bell.

Cast in bronze by the Coalbrookiut.e Co.

A Youth at a Stream

. , Foley, A.R.A.

Cast in bronze by Hatfield.

Richard Cceur dc Lion

. , The Baron Marociietti.

Victory ....

. Rauch, Berlin.

No. OF
Plate.

The Amazon ....

By Kiss, Berlin.

The Christ Child (“ Christ Engel”)

. Rietschel, Dresden.

Cupid and Panther .

. Rietschel, Dresden.

The Pleasures of Public Gardens

. Drake, Berlin.

The First Step

. Magni, Milan.

The First Cradle

. De Bay, Paris.

A Group in Bronze .

. Vittoz, Paris.

The Hunter fighting with the Panther Jekichau, Copenhag

SECTION 11METAL-WO RK.

English Gold and Silver Plate and Jewellery.

Vase in Silver ....

Hunt and Rose ell, London.

Group of Church Plate .

Skidmore, Coventry.

Group of Plate ....

Garrard, London.

Gold Vase, enriched with Jewels and

Enamels .....

Watherston & Brocden, London.

Jewellery, in the Mediaeval Style

IIardman, Birmingham.

Silversmiths’ Work

Gough, Birmingham.

117

Portion of a Shield in Silver

Vechte ; for IIunt& Roskell, Loud.

Electrotype.

Table and other objects .

Elkington & Mason, Birmingham.

138

Shield

Elkixgtox & Mason, Birmingham.

Foreign Plate.

Centre-piece in Silver

Wagner, Berlin.

Portion of a Silver Shield. Presented

by bis Majesty the King of Prussia
to H.R.II. the Prince of Wales, on

the occasion of his Baptism

Statuette in Ivory and Objects in Gold

Froment-Meiirice, Paris.

and Silver ....

111

Jewellery .....

Rudolphi, Paris.

113

Chocolate Cup in Silver .

Lebrun, Paris.

137

Group of Silversmiths’ Work .

Froment-Meurice, Paris.

153

Specimens of Silversmiths’ Work

Marrel, Freres, Paris.

Enamels.

Group from the ....

Royal Manufactory at Sevres.

107

Vase and Dish ....

Morel ; for Webb, London.

127 Group of Chinese Enamels.

145 Gvonp of Objects .... Morel, London.

156 A ase ...... Hunt and Roskell, London.

Damascening .

3 Dagger and Sheath . . . Zuloaga, Madrid.

8 Pistols (engraved and inlaid) . . Zuloaga, Madrid.

151 Group of Objects .... Falloise, Liege.

Iron and Steel.

19 Fountain and Ornamental Gates . Coalbrookdale Company.

99 Stove. Hoole, Robson, & Hoole, Sheffield.

101 Daggers and Sheaths . . . Wostenholm & Son, Sheffield.

106

Stove, in the Mediaeval Style

. . Hardman, Birmingham.

121

Home Stove and Fender .

. Stuart and Smith, Sheffield.

122

Details of Home Stove and Fender . Stuart and Smith, Sheffield.

129

Portions of Stoves .

. . Hoole, Robson, & Hoole, Sheffield.

Fountain in Iron

. . Andre, Paris.

105

Shield in Iron

. . Letage Moutier, Paris.

Brass , §c.

Bedstead

. . V infield, Birmingham.

Open-work Panel .

. . Bailey and Co. London.

134

Standard Lamp

. Winfield, Birmingham.

139

Pendant Lamp

. Matt fat, Paris.

Group of Chinese Bronzes, inlaid with

silver wire.

SECTION III.—TEXTILE FABRICS, LACE, AND EMBROIDERY.

22 Silk Brocades

GO “ The Coventry Ribbon,” and Speci¬
mens of Ribbons from St. Etienne.

87 Figured Silk .

119 Figured Silk .

92 Portions of Shawls .

70 Damask Table-covers
91 Printed Table-covers

120 Block-printed Table-cover
64 Portieres of printed Mohair

116 Chintz Pattern
26 Printed Muslins
108 Carpet, in the Medieval Style

Campbell, Harrison, and Lloyd,
and Manner and Son, Spitalficlds.
(For Howe u., Jamgs, and (Jo., London.)

Campbell, Harrison, and Lloyd,
Spitalficlds.

(For Lewis and Allen by, London.)

Matheyon and Buvard, Lyons.

Roxburgh and Co. Paisley.

Beveridge, Dunfermline.

II. and T. Wood, London.

From Designs by .Miss A. Carey.

Evans and Co. London.

Lees and Co. London.

Japuis and Sox, Paris.

Depovilly and Co. Paris.

C R A cE, London. Designed by Pugin-

132 Axminster Carpet .

148 Axminster Carpet .

30 Black Lace Flounce
102 Machine-made Lace

146 Specimen of Lace .

154 Specimens of Iloniton Lace
47 Embroidered Book-cover
I Embroidery in Bullion, from Tunis.
10 Specimens of Turkish Embroidery.
20 Specimens of Russian Embroidery.
76 Greek Embroidery.

80 Albanian Costume Embroidery.

123 Embroidered Bags from Greece.

144 Specimens of Swiss Embroidery.

Jackson and Graham, London.
Watson, Bell, and Co. London.
Greasely & Hopcroft, Nottingham.

IIey man & Alexander, and Birkin,
Nottingham.

Miss Jane Clarke, London.

Mrs. Tread win, Exeter.

French, Bolton, Lancashire.

CLASSIFIED LIST OF SUBJECTS.— Continued.

SECTION IV.—PORCELAIN, GLASS, AND EARTHENWARE.

Nn. OF
Pi.ME.

11 Group of Vases, &c.

147 Group of Objects in Porcelain .

By Minton, Stoke-upon-Trent.

Copeland, London and Stoke-upon-
Trent.

58 Renaissance Vase and Dish in Parian
67 Luca della Robbia Friezes
81 Flower-stand .

Minton, Stokc-upon-Trent.

Minton, Stoke-upon-Trent.

Modelled by the Baron M Auoriurm.

89 Objects from a Dessert Service pre¬
sented by her Majesty the Queen
to the Emperor of Austria .

97 Terra-cotta Figure of Galatea and Ma¬
jolica Garden-Vases .

128 Pavement in Encaustic Tiles

74 Vase in Terra-cotta

14 Vase, ** La Gloire”

31 Vase, “ Rimini” .

Mi nton, Stokc-upon-Trent.

Minton, Stoke-upon-Trent.

Modelled by John Thomas, London,
for E. L. Betts, Esq.

Royal Manufactory at Sevres.
Royal Manufactory at Sevres.

No. OF
Plate.

115 Pendant Lamp in Porcelain
6 Group of Vases in Beauvais ware
45 Fountain in Terra-cotta .

55 Stove in White Porcelain
78 Vase in White China
18 Group of Objects in Glass

23 The Crystal Fountain
110 Group of Objects in Glass

38 Group of Glass
86 Stained Glass

114 Specimens of Stained Glass

By The Royal M vnufactory, Sevres.

. Mansard, Voisinlieu, near Paris.

. M uii ii, Thiorgartenfelde, near Char¬
iot ten burg, Prussia,

. Hoffman, Berlin.

. Joutianm: .uni & Dubois, Paris.

. Bacchus, Birmingham ; Green, and
Apsley Pellatt, London.

. F.&C.Osler, London & Birmingham.

. Apsley Pellatt, Naylor, & Green,
London.

. Count Harkach, Bohemia.

. Wajles, Newcastle -upon-Tyne, and
Chance, Birmingham.

. Lesson, and Gerente, Paris.

section v —architectural decoration, furniture, wood and ivory carving, etc.

136 Decoration derived from the Alhambra;

being a portion of the Cabinet of
the Queen of Spain at Aranjuez .

63 Decoration of an Apartment

141 Painted Arabesque

142 Altar and lleredos ....

42 Paper-Hanging ....
71 Paper-Hanging .

95 Paper-Hanging .

100 Paper-Hanging .

55 Pilaster in Carton-pierre
15 Window Ornament, from Tunis.

34 Ornamental Gun-stand, from Tunis.

54 Chinese Looking-glass in carved Wood
Frame.

9 The Massacre of the Innocents, carved
in oak .

69 Niche and Figure, carved in wood
62 Group of Flowers, carved in wood
130 Cradle, carved in boxwood

75 Bedroom Furniture, in marquetry

Rafael Contreras.

John Thomas, London.

Crack ; with Decoration in Compo¬
sition, by Jackson & Sons, London.

Myers, London, and Hardman, Bir¬
mingham. Designed by Puoir.

Hinciiliffe & Co., Chelsea.
Woollams, London.

Townsend and Parker, London.
Mader, Freres, Paris.

Cruchet, Paris.

Gekrts, Louvain.

Knkcht, Paris.

Wali.is, Louth, Lincolnshire.

Rogers, London, for her Majesty the
Queen.

Trollope, London.

152 Sideboard and Furniture .

143 Sideboard, carved in Oak
150 Group of Furniture
90 Cabinet, in Oak, with brass panels
59 Pianofortes . ... .

83 Marquetry Enrichments of a Pianofort e
131 Decoration of a Box of Water-Colours
158 Bedstead in Zebra-wood .

7 Escrutoire in White Wood
21 Cassette, or Jewel-case, carved in Ivory
155 Cabinet in Ebony .

1,26 Panel, ornamented with Buhl .

50 Candelabrum and Arabesque .
Florentine Mosaic .

Enamelled Slate ....
118 Jade-stone Vases, from China.

52 Bookbinding and Inlaying
96 Bookbinding .

109 Book-cover in carved Ivory, presented
to her Majesty the Queen by the
Emperor of Austria.

Snell, London.

Jackson and Graham, London.

Snell, London.

Grace, London. Designed by I'eois.
Collard & Collard, Loudon,
Broad wood, London.

Ackkkmann and Co. London.
Leistler and Son, Vienna.

Wettli, Berne.

M ati fat, Paris.

Liexard, Paris.

Fourdinois, Paris.

Trent an oye, Rome.

Wood ru f f, Bakewell.

Magnus, Pimlico,

Batten, Clapham.

J. and J. Leighton, London.

SECTION VI.—OBJECTS FROM INDIA.

24 Kincob Pattern, woven at Ahmedabad.

28 Cashmere Scarf-end.

72 Kincob Pattern.

12 Embroidery, from Dacca.

16 Elephant Trapping.

36 Embroidered Boot-front, Scindian manufacture, from his Highness Meer AH
Moorad.

44 Shawl, from Delhi, t he pattern worked on a Cash mere ground.

48 Scarf-cud, embroidered at Dacca, on white muslin.

56 Embroidery, in white silk on black net, from Dacca.

84 Embroidery, on black cloth.

88 Embroidery, on crimson silk.

140 Bullion Embroidery,

124 Enamelling, from Arms.

135 Decoration of Metal-work, from Arms.

152 Group of Objects, principally enamelled.

2 Painted Lacquer-work, from Lahore.

32 Lacquer-work.

112 Lacquer-work, from Cashmere.

lo7 Ivory.Throne and Footstool, presented to her Majesty the Queen by his
Highness the Rajah of Travaneore.

40 Group of Crystal Vases and Jewellery.

104 Decoration of Saddle-cover.

68 Borders from Illuminated Manuscripts.

149 Enrichments from Manuscripts.

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PLATE f.

THE AMAZON.

KV KISS

This magnificent group, in which the boldest conception and treatment of a grand idea are tempered by
an exquisite appreciation of beauty and refinement of execution, is probably the noblest work of art now
existing, in which, man has displayed the mastery his intelligence has enabled him to gain over the “ stubborn
metals.” As such it has been selected to form the subject of our first plate.

The merits of an object, upon the production of which so high an order of imagination and realisation
have been brought to bear, are so evident, that minute criticism becomes inapplicable, and would only
interfere with that broad impression of delight which should be conveyed to the mind by the contemplation
of so grand a manifestation of the power of art. Instead, therefore, of dwelling on its many great beauties, or
on its few defects, we shall prefer giving a short account of the rapid developement of that branch of
industry in Prussia, of which it is so fine a specimen.

The original model for this group, when made by Professor Kiss, then an artist comparatively unknown,
excited so much enthusiasm and admiration as to lead to the formation of a subscription fund to defray the

expenses of its reproduction in bronze. In the year 1839 the great casting was successfully made, the

group was presented to the King of Prussia by the subscribers, and was placed in front of the Royal Museum
at Berlin, where it now remains, a monument worthy to adorn a capital, to the beauty and grandeur of which

men such as Schinkel, Rauch, and Cornelius, have contributed in their respective arts.

The impetus which the execution of the great works in bronze of Cellini gave to the advancement of the
art of casting in that metal spread into all the countries of Europe, and among others into Prussia. In that
country many remarkable monuments were executed, but towards the year 1700 the processes fell to a great
extent into disuse: as late, however, as 1713, statues, in the formation of which the method detailed by

Cellini was strictly followed, were cast at Berlin by Jacobi.

For about one hundred years the art seems to have been lost altogether in Prussia, since it was not until
the year 1818 that the Parisian founder Lequine was invited to Berlin by Schadow, who was then Director
of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. The first casting executed by Lequine was after his patron’s statue of
Luther, which was ordered for the birthplace of the great Reformer. Quickly in succession then came the
statues of Blucher by Schadow, and many important works by Rauch. All these were executed at the royal
foundry, and by them the foundation was laid of a flourishing branch of industry. Private speculation began to
take the subject up, and many excellent castings were executed by Hopfgarten. A school was established by the
Institute of Industry to educate workmen, but, owing to the untimely death of its Professor, it failed to effect
the good which might have been expected to result from its operations. Messrs. Dinger and Feirabend, both
intelligent young artists, were sent to Paris by the above-mentioned Society, and on their return executed
many works successfully. By the former were completed the principal parts of the beautiful fountain which
Schinkel designed and Kiss modelled. Several French artists and engravers, such as Cone and Gonon,

contributed by their beautiful chasing to the perfection of the principal works cast in Berlin. Under these

French artists there studied a young German, a native of Culmbach, who came to Berlin in the year 1818.
Christoph Heinrich Fischer immediately distinguished himself by his talent, and was soon employed to realise,

THE AMAZON.

bronze, some of the finest productions of Tieck and Rauch. The reputation he acquired by his execution
of these important works, induced the subscribers to the fund for causing the group which forms the subject
of our present notice to be cast in bronze, to place that great work in his hands; and every visitor to Berlin
bears testimony to the perfection with which he honoured the trust reposed in him. In that masterpiece of
bronze-work the climax of the art has been attained, and Fischer has placed himself on a level with
Stieglmeyer and Miller, the celebrated founders of Munich.

The group which now stands in the Great Exhibition is a facsimile of Fischer’s bronze, executed in zinc
by M. Geiss, of Berlin, and bronzed over by a process employed by himself alone.

It is only of late years that zinc has been applied to furnish the material of works of art in any country,

and considering that the first attempt in the Royal Iron Foundry of Berlin was only made in the year 1832,

the progress since that year is truly remarkable. The great mind of Schinkel was one of the earliest to

perceive the capabilities of this material to minister to the requirements of art, and in a memorandum of his,
dated the 3d of May, 1840, he eloquently urges its immediate adoption as a substitute for bronze, See. The
Prussian public were not slow to avail themselves of the beautiful objects which issued from the foundries of
M. Devaranne and of M. Geiss, the two most distinguished proficients in the processes of fabrication. The
finish of the group of the Amazon, which, as we have stated, was cast by M. Geiss, must convince every one
that SchinkePs anticipation of the perfection to which the manipulation of zinc might be carried was by no
means unreasonable.

Much as the works of such sculptors as Rauch and Kiss must endear them to all lovers of art, in those
who have ever had an opportunity of becoming acquainted with the artists themselves, the manly openness,
dignity, and modesty of the two great men, and their true and unaffected enthusiasm for the good and
beautiful, must have excited feelings of yet higher respect and yet deeper interest.

Q. P C

M E N

D LACQUER

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FROM LAHORE

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R A P H E ^ 5

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PLATE II.

SPECIMENS OF PAINTED LACQUER-WORK FROM LAHORE.

The possession oi the substance known in commerce as “ lac,” and of vegetable oils, which, with scarcely
any preparation form natural varnishes, lias given rise, in Japan, China, and many districts of India, to that
branch ot manufacture generally known as “ lacquer-work.” The term, however, is a very vague one, since
under it are usually comprehended not only objects in the production of which many various processes of
the application of “lac” are involved, but many other articles, into the formation and decoration of which
it is not likely that any particle of that material really enters. The substance “lac” is an exudation from
various trees, mostly of the fig species. A peculiar insect, the coccus ficus, perforates the tender bark of the
smaller branches and shoots, for the purpose of depositing its eggs. About the perforations thus made a
milky liquid coagulates, which, solidifying on exposure to the air, forms a resinous covering entirely surrounding
the bough, and embalming the insects, as flies are embalmed in amber. The thin coating when separated
from the twigs becomes “ stick-lac.” When boiled in water and broken up, it becomes “ seed-lac;” and
when melted and reduced to thin sheets, it constitutes what is known as “ shell-lac.”

“ Lac ” possesses two distinct properties of great commercial value, since, while as a resin it is of unequalled
purity, it derives from the insects embedded in it colouring matter, which is of the greatest value in the
production of a red dye. The colouring matter is obtained from “stick-lac,” probably by a dissolution
in some alkali and the admixture of alum, causing a precipitate, which, when formed into small square
cakes and dried, constitutes “ lac-dye,” a substance which has been very largely imported into this country
for many years.

“ Sliell-lac ” enters into the composition of the best sealing-wax, possessing the property of melting without
charring on the application of heat.

In one variety of Indian and Chinese “ lacquer-work,” a kind of sealing-wax is spread to a considerable
thickness on wooden boxes or cabinets, and is then worked over with patterns indented, with slightly heated
stamps, into the external coating, and then finished with cutting tools.

In another variety, that generally known in this country as old japan-work, the lac, dissolved in spirit or
essential oil, forms a varnish, which being applied to wood or papier-mache in successive coats produces at
last a beautiful smooth surface. Upon this surface, when dry, any amount of ornament may be painted with
varnish, over which gold or bronze dust being powdered, adhesion to the wet varnish only takes place where
the pattern has been traced; and thus were produced the cabinets and boxes which formed the favourite
decorations of saloons in the days of Hogarth and the “ Spectator,” exciting the liveliest competition among
the fair frequenters of the celebrated old china auctions.

The gilding of those cabinets was sometimes executed partly in leaf-gold, and partly by the above process
of powdering. The contrast of the two textures, heightened by partial burnishing, and occasionally lowered
by tinted varnishes, was productive of very happy effects, which might be successfully imitated in the present
day. Frequently thin veneers of mother-of-pearl and ivory were made to adhere to the surface by the employ-
inent of the “ lac ” as a cement, and by such additions the richest effects were produced.

In the decoration of the elegant boxes from which the illustrations shown in Plate No. II. have been taken,
little, if any, lac has been used. The wood forming the basis upon which the patterns have been executed,
has been covered over with a ground probably of plaster and white of egg or size, similar in composition to

SPECIMENS OF PAINTED LACQUER-WORK FROM LAHORE.

the intonaco, or coating made use of by the early Italian painters, and known as gesso. Over this ground has
been spread a wash of some rich vegetable oil, or possibly of lac dissolved in spirits. Upon this coating,
known in China as tong yeou ., the painting is executed. On the completion of the painting a number of
thin coats of beautifully clear varnish have been applied, in order to bring the whole to that fine hard polish
for v. hich such works are celebrated. Occasionally in this variety of work raised ornaments are produced by
stamping the ground before it has set and become hard, in a manner similar to that in which the early
painters of the Florentine and Siennese schools loved to decorate the nimbi, &c., surrounding the heads of the
saints.

Articles executed by the above process are frequently imitated in a coarse way, by substituting for the
plaster and white-of-egg ground a coat of thick white paint, on which patterns of less delicacy and grace
aie then painted. A final coat ot lac varnish preserves the painting, and brings the surface to a state quite
goud enough for the common class ot objects, to which this decoration is most frequently applied.

As other specimens of ** lac-work ”
the knowledge of art displayed in their
Coventry manufacturers, to the beautiful

will be given in succeeding numbers, we shall reserve our notices of
arrangement, simply calling the attention of the fair sex, and of the
ribbon patterns suggested by these exquisite borders.

r* L A T t z>

ERE 0 " 5 M M ' c | F I T u* I. M P' r R v W»**T Tim -•

DAGGER AND SHEATH IN THE D A M A $ 0, E N I H fj R K

BY ZUL0AC0 OF MA D R D.

erDPiV’tt i.ith

lOmPHN PRINTED AND PUBLISHED •*

• 551 BY tJAV it 50 N V I T H 11 0 K A PHERS D T H E T; V V t N

PLATE III.

A HUNTING-KNIFE AN1) SIIEATH,

EXHIBITED BY I). E. ZULOAGA, OF MADRID.

Thk reputation acquired by Spam for the manufacture of admirable steel may be traced to a remote
period, since in the time of Polybius we learn that the haslati, or Roman spearmen, carried upon their hips
Spanish swords. The manufacture appears to have been early carried on both at Toledo and Bilbao by
the Spaniards, who possessed the raw material in its highest perfection in the rich mines of Biscaye, and in
many other parts of the country. From the refined knowledge of the art of metal-working early’acquired
by the Saracenic race, ot which such ample evidence is given by the wide-world celebrity of the Damascus
blade and the exquisite Moussoul inlaying, there can be no doubt that Spain acquired those processes which
caused her weapons to be eagerly sought after throughout the middle ages. From a.d. 712, when Toledo was
taken by Tank Ibn Zeyyad, after the battle of Guadaletc, until a.d. 1085, that city, with the exception only of
Corduba, ranked as the principal centre of Moorish intelligence and magnificence; and when, as the earliest
as well as the most important see in the Peninsula, it subsequently became the residence of the Castilian
kings, its population increased to 200,000, and its fabrication of arms extended coincidently. During the middle
and latter portion of the fifteenth century the royal manufacture was at its highest state of perfection, and
rivalled successfully the celebrated establishments of Ferrara and Milan. In the Hotel Clugny collection at
Pans, and m the “ Armena Reale,” at Madrid, evidence of the perfection of the national workmanship of that
period may be traced. In the latter collection especially, a tolerably complete chronological succession of

objects may be found, illustrating the mingling of Moorish with Spanish design and process, at various points
in the history of the two races.

lhe specimens ot sword and dagger blades exhibited by the Royal Ordnance of Toledo, and the
exquisite damascene work of Signor Zuloaga, bear testimony to the fact, that the “ right hand” of Spain
has not forgot “ its cunning,” and that in the midst of revolution she has yet been enabled to preserve in
full perfection the skill which made her “ Toledos” and “ Bilbos” celebrated throughout the world. Mr. Inglis,
in his Travels, furnishes a poor description of the manufactory, but we have been given to understand that

since the period of his visit very important changes have taken place, and that the whole has now been
placed upon a new and extended footing.'.

In describing other objects of a somewhat similar nature, we shall hereafter take occasion to allude to
the various processes by which the beautiful inlaying in gold and silver which decorates the couteau de chasse ,
engraved in this Plate, have been effected; for the present we shall only offer a few remarks on the

xaiious forms of those objects on which the skill of Spanish cutlers was engaged at different periods of
history.

I he original Spanish gladius used by the Romans was about twenty inches long, and was of steel, straight,
double-edo-ed, and cut-and-thrust.

O z

In the early centuries of the middle ages, the European sword gradually lengthened until it grew into the
long, straight sword of the Bayeux tapestries. Every soldier carried with him, in addition to his sword, a
sort of knife ( coltellus ), used generally for his food, but sometimes as a weapon also. Daggers were occasionally

A HUNTING-KNIFE AND SHEATH.

worn, but principally as an indication of nobility. As mail-armour was made stronger, swords were increase
in weight and size, until they grew to such a length as to require to be slung on the back instead of being
attached to the hip. The unwieldiness of this sword causing it to be rather difficult to kill a man after he
had been cut down on the field of battle, the French, in the thirteenth century, introduced the epee a estoc,
or stabbing-sword; this subsequently became known throughout Europe as the mkerkorde, and was regarded

as a necessary accompaniment to the large sword of battle.

When plate-armour became universal in the latter part of the fourteenth century, single-handed snoids

were found insufficient to make much impression, and hence arose the great two-handed swords, which
obtained especial favour in Germany. As the whole of the body was now encased in iron, it was only through
the meeting-points of the various pieces of armour that a coup de grace could be given to a fallen knight;
the blade of the msericorde was therefore made very thin, and its point sufficiently fine to penetrate the
smallest interstice. It was partly with the heavy two-handed swords, partly with their lances, that the Spanish
cavaliers finally achieved the expulsion of their more lightly-clad antagonists the Moois. bp to that epoch,
it was principally in the fabrication of their crooked scimetars and daggers that the Moois had excelled;
and in that of their lighter swords of state, the Spaniards. As very heavy body-armour was relinquished
piece by piece, light swords came into fashion, and strong indeed must have been the quilted doublet that
could withstand the thrust of a Bilbao or Toledo rapier. First adopted by the French as the epee de Passot,
their use spread rapidly throughout Europe, and it was in the form of the thin, straight small-swoid, with
a blade of exquisite temper and a handle of the choicest design, that the Spanish swords obtained their

greatest popularity.

That a wide demand for Spanish weapons is likely to revive, there can be little doubt, so long as a Signor
Zuloaga continues to lavish upon them the exquisite workmanship he exhibits. Ilis factory is increasing
rapidly, since, though only established five years, it already employs constantly no fewer than thirty first-class
artisans.

PLATE IV.

Ihese line patterns have for the most part been selected from the fittings of saddles, the comparative
beauty and costliness ot which are in the East sure criterions of the social position of every rider.

Designed with great taste to occupy, without crowding and without contortion, the singularly shaped
spaces demanded by the peculiar form of the saddle, they offer an agreeable example of the manner in
which the skilful designer may take advantage of what appears at first sight to be a difficulty, for the
purpose of exhibiting the mastery with which his artistic powers enable him to overcome it. It is a

remarkable peculiarity of Oriental design that, despite of the irregularity of any of the compartments into

which a surface may be subdivided, it is exceedingly rare to find that every leaf and flower of the ornament

intended to fill them is not complete in all its parts, and adapted to occupy its position without any
apparent cramping or distortion. Considering how often we meet in works of high art with a picture-
frame cutting half through the body of a man or a horse, or a figure doubled up into an unnatural attitude
in one angle of a pediment in order to get it in, A\e cannot but feel that a useful hint is afforded by
that ingenious disposition which can adapt, with such skill and invariable success, the subject of the
composition to its bounding geometrical lines.

In addition to the value which the embroideries of Tunis possess as beautiful specimens of design
and manual dexterity, it is to be remembered, that a peculiar historic interest attaches to every
production of those, among whom still linger the traditions of that Art by which the wonders of Corduba
and Granada were achieved.

In the orphreys of the Dalmatic shown in the mosaic representation of King Roger, in the Church
of the Martorana at Palermo;* in the actual vestments which are believed to have wrapped the body of
King Roger, and others of the early Norman kings, figured in Danieli’s work ;f and in the singularly
interesting paintings on shields given in Mr. Owen Jones’ “ Alhambra,” avc have ample evidence of the
skill evinced at early periods by the Moors in the elaboration of rich embroidery, and the extent to
Avhich it was customary to cover over every article of costume with elaborate blazoning in gold and colours.
A comparison of these interesting relics with the examples which the liberality and public spirit of the
reigning Bey of Tunis have consigned to this country for exhibition, clearly demonstrates how little the
traditional patterns have changed in character during centuries of political vicissitude. Handed down, as
we may imagine them to have been, from father to son, from master to apprentice, they Avould appear to
have rather gained than lost in beauty of form and perfection of execution.

When the learned Girault de PrangeyJ seeks to trace to their source the origin of the graceful ornaments
of the Arabs, Avhich, as we have seen, still embellish the Avorks of the Tunisians, it is to Persia, the
magnificent, that he turns. “ It is highly probable,” says he, “ that the Aral) races brought in contact
(during the earliest ages of Islamism) with Persia and the surrounding countries, borrowed from them
somewhat of their luxury and of their arts. The emigration of the Arabs to the north soon bore these
precious advantages to the capital of their growing empire, since under Omar may be clearly recognised
the complete domination of the arts and sciences of the Persians. History shows us this Caliph, collecting

* Gaily Knight, “Saracenic and Norman Remains in Sicily.” + “ Regali Sepolchri del Duonio di Palermo.” Napoli, 1814.

J « Lssai sur 1’Architecture des Maures et Arabes, en Espagne, en Sicile, et en Barberie.” Paris, 1841.

SPECIMENS OF EMBROIDERY FROM TUNIS.

with care their customs and their processes, with a view to the establishment of the Hegira; and Makrisi*
assures us that he caused to be struck dirhems of the 18tli year of the Hegira in imitation of the coins

of the Sassanides.”

To return to the actual specimens under consideration, we have been informed that the whole of them
are executed by men, natives of the town of Tunis, whose sole occupation consists in the execution of
similar works. The value of many of the rich costumes is very great, frequently amounting, exclusive of
a splendid mantle (which may alone be worth £100), to as much as £150 sterling, while a saddle, with
its trappings, embroidered in a style similar to that from which the illustrations of the present Plate have been
taken, could not be procured in Tunis for less than £400.

# a

Traite des Monnaies,” &c.

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THE CHILD CHRIST

A BAS RELIEF IN WHITE MARBLE

("C HR 1 ST LNGEL")

BY RiETSCHEL OF DRESDEN.

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PLATE V.

THE CHRIST-CHILD, A BASSO-RELIEVO IN MARBLE,

BY IUETSCHEI, OK DRESDEN.

Among those tiaditions wh.ieli have grown into household words in the domestic life of Germany, there
is none more graceful than that of the “ Christ-Engel ” The legend authorises a belief that on Christmas-
Eve (Wdh-nachts-abend ) Our Saviour, taking upon himself the similitude of an infant, revisits this world

to spread joy and happiness in every pious family, and more particularly to convey to those whose tender

age assimilates to that under which he originally manifested his presence on earth, his benediction on those
festivities to which German children especially look forward with anticipations of unfeigned delight. The
Christmas-tree, which at that season bears fruit most precious to childish affections, is supposed to fructify
under the genial influence of the especial blessing conferred by that visitation.

I he artist from whose elegant fancy the subject of our plate has emanated, has attempted to embody the
transmission to earth, by angelic agency, of that much-wished-for visitant, and the hope and joy of those who
have looked forward to his descent as a season of peculiar “ peace on earth, and good will towards men.’*
The extreme elegance of the lines of this composition,—the seraphic beauty of the angel,—the pure beneficence
expressed in the countenance of the Infant Christ, and the unalloyed hope and faith of the attendant
children, are exquisitely expressed; and if ever a production belied Madame de Stacks flippant observation,
that the Germans “ could conceive art but not execute it/’ this refined work, evincing so high an order of

thought, knowledge, and skill, may be allowed to have done so.

The artist Ilietschel, born at Pulsnitz, near Dresden, early in the present century, received his artistic
education at Berlin. Having while quite young evinced considerable talent in his profession, he was employed
as modeller at the celebrated ironwvorks of Count Einsiedel at Lauchhammer, where he worked for a short
time. On giving up his engagement there he revisited Berlin, and entered the studio of Rauch. In 1831
he travelled to Italy, where he remained some months, and on his return he competed successfully for the
great prize of sculpture, offered by the Royal Academy of Arts at Berlin. The reputation acquired by this
effort procured him an invitation to reside at Dresden, and to accept the position of Professor of Sculpture
in the Royal Academy of that city. With his appointment Rietschel received a commission to execute a
monument to the late King of Saxony, Ernest Augustus (the Just). The monument consisted of a sitting
figure of the monarch, placed upon a square pedestal, at the four angles of which a corresponding number
of allegorical figures were placed. These consisted of Wisdom, Piety, Justice and Mercy. The pedestal
w r as designed by Schinkcl, and several years subsequently (in 1845) it w 7 as erected, with some slight
modifications of ornament by Gottfried Semper, in the court of the Zwinger Palace at Dresden.

The appointment of Semper, in 1834, as Director of the Architectural Academy at Dresden, and the
commission he subsequently received to prepare the designs for the New Theatre in that city, produced an
occasion admirably suited to develope the abilities of Rietschel. It was proposed to fill up the two tympana
of the pediments of that beautiful building with sculpture, and the important task of carrying out this
proposition w r as at once confided to our artist.

It is remarked by an intelligent critic, M. Hippolyte For to ul,* that the union of antique form and

# (< De I’Art en Allemagne.” Paris, 1841.

THE CHRIST-CHILD.

modern sentiment,-that alliance of which Carstens had at the end of the last century only dreamt-
has been .satisfactorily effected in this great work. In the subject of composition which fills the eastern
pediment, says he, “ the artist has accepted the definition that Aristotle has given of Tragedy; commenting
on it with the spirit of this age, and inscribing it in the language of the ancients. To purge the passions
by the emotions of art,—to submit the disordered forces of the soul to the harmonious laws of the beautiful,—
is the idea that the sculptor has expressed, by forms invariably noble, by attitudes full of ease and freedom.”
At one extremity of the pediment, Sacrilege and the violent passions are represented in the story of Orestes.
The priest is overthrown at the foot of the altar,—the attendants, despairing, bewail the death of /Egisthus ;
whilst the Furies stimulate their grief, and pursue the murderer, who casts himself exhausted at the feet of
Minerva. In the middle of the pediment Melpomene presents her frowning mask to the Furies, and turns
her own calm countenance towards the other side of the composition, in which Minerva conducts the suppliant
to three august, aged men,—Sophocles, TEschylus, and Euripides, seated as judges, but w elcoming and opening
their arms to the unhappy. .Behind them the sword, drawn in anger, is letumcd to its scabbaid, and Mnn
employs in subjugating nature the energy previously directed at once against his fellow-men and against himself. •

It is remarked by M. Fortoul, that both in the combination of its lines and the severity of its forms,
this pediment recalls that of the temple of Jupiter Panliellenios at Egina, the preservation of the fragments of
which at Munich has unquestionably exercised an influence over some of the productions of modern German
sculpture. One point of similarity certainly exists between the two, namely, that in each all the figures are
modelled in the round and detached from the ground of the tympanum; but in his attention to the delicate
modelling of the human form, and to its easiest and most graceful poses, Rietschel must be admitted to have
so far surpassed that monument of ancient art, that we can scarcely believe it to have ever materially affected
his imagination.

In the corresponding pediment to this, in which Tragedy is represented, Rietschel has not less successfully
personified the Lyric Drama—representing the influence of Music elevating the human soul. In the centre of
the composition Religion soars aloft on eagles’ wings,—on the right is placed the Spirit of Epic, on the left
those of Lyric and Idyllic poetry. At the extremity are Genii emerging from beneath the wings of Night. In
addition to these truly noble works, Rietschel executed for the same theatre four sitting statues—Goethe and
Schiller, Mozart and Gluck.

A pediment, somewhat similar in subject to the last described, was also carried out by our artist for the
Opera House at Berlin. For Leipsic several of RietscheTs most celebrated works have been undertaken. Ilis
great monument to Lessing, and several others, have sustained in that city the high reputation he so early acquired

in Berlin. Ilis principal work at Leipsic is the beautiful frieze with which the “ Aula,” or great hall of

the University, is surrounded. In that most charming series of compositions the sculptor has embodied the
whole progress of the developement of the human intellect, from the Chaldean shepherds gazing in wonder
and admiration at the stars, to the students of the nineteenth century assembled round the professor’s chair.
This truly philosophic cycle of subjects the artist has adorned with many graceful episodes—he has modelled

the whole in a natural and well-sustained style, and has carried out every detail conscientiously, and with

extreme delicacy of handling. This same series of compositions, cast in plaster, decorates the staircase of the
Royal Palace at Dresden.

Of late years RietscheTs talent has been principally devoted to compositions for works proposed to be
introduced in the new Museum at Dresden, and to the execution of a monument to Weber, the musician, which
is now on the point of completion. It is proposed that it shall be placed opposite to Semper’s Theatre.

We have now briefly indicated the leading public works over which the genius of Rietschel has shed its
illuminating influence; there yet remain a multitude of smaller works, which, if not evidencing the same power,
are endowed perhaps with even more beauty. Of these it will be our privilege to speak in a second notice
of the works of this truly great artist.

It gives us sincere pleasure to acknowledge the kind assistance that has been rendered to us by Gottfried
Semper, by whose aid alone we have been enabled to appreciate to its full extent the power and ability of
his old friend and brother professor.

* lliis pediment is accurately engraved in the great work, “ Ristoire do l’Art modernc en Allemngne, par le Comte Athanase Raczynski.’’
1 niT, IS d). It has also, together with its companion, been excellently reproduced on a larger scale hy one of the German Art-Unions.

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1*1 ATE VI.

Ap.o i t twenty years ago M. Zeigler, a young French artist, travelled in Belgium in pursuit of picturesque
subjects for his pencil. Studying the pictures of Gerard Dow, Teniers, Jan Steen, &c., he was struck with
the beauty of many of the old tankards and pitchers so familiar to collectors of the works of Dutch and
Flemish masters.

Finding in some few private collections at Ghent, Bruges, c^e., elegant specimens of this variety of ceramic

art. M. Zeigler made careful studies of the forms of many of them. On his return to France he conceived

the idea of reproducing these objects, and turned his attention to the selection of a fitting locality for the

experiment. Remembering the reputation which the immortal works of Bernard de Palissy, in the age of

Francis I., had conferred upon the clays in the neighbourhood of Beauvais, M. Zeigler directed his inquiries

to the discovery of such a quality of material as would be best adapted to the particular reproduction which

he had in view. lie finally decided on Voisinlieu, near the above-mentioned city, and there established a

manufactory. After many attempts he finally succeeded in producing, at first an imitation, and subsequently

an origination, which has stamped the articles proceeding from his establishment with the impress of taste

and with a. remarkable individuality of character.

In his interesting and beautifully executed work on Ceramic Art,* M. Zeigler has recorded his studies,
both literary and pictorial, in connexion therewith; and has produced an extremely valuable addition to the
more well-known treatise of Brongniart.

M. Zeigler*® style of composition, as applied to vases and other similar objects, may be divided into two
varieties. One of these appears to be based upon the study of Oriental forms and ornaments, which are
brought together in geometrical perforations and conventional interlacings in low relief; and the other intro¬
ducing only, by way of decoration, simple combinations of leaves, flowers, stalks, branches, 6cc.

Although at first disheartened by the partial failure of many of his experiments, our artist, with a
perseverance worthy of, if not equal to, that of his great predecessor, Bernard de Palissy, finally succeeded
in so realising his conceptions as to be enabled to introduce them satisfactorily to the world. His trade
soon extended, and a very large demand for his productions was created, not only in France but in other
countries of Europe.

After some years’ successful practice, M. Zeigler became anxious to return to studies more directly
congenial to his profession as a painter. He therefore resigned his interest in the concern into the hands
of M. Mansard, who had been for some time associated with him. The commercial and manufacturing
talent of the latter gentleman has materially assisted in maintaining the excellence of the Beauvais ware,
and permanently establishing it in public estimation. Sales are effected, and the main portion of M. Mansard's
business is transacted, at his extensive depot in the Rue Richelieu, Paris.

Among the improvements which have been of late years added to the original scheme of M. Zeigler,

* “ Ktntles (Yramique, par J. Zeigler.”

Paris, 1850.

VASES IN BEAUVAIS WAKE.

may be noticed, the power of picking out, in varied colours, the different subjects, such as leaves, flowers,
tendrils, conventional patterns, See., which form the decoration of these vases. The tints being applied in
enamel are perfectly vitrified under the action of the fire, and thereby become as imperishable as the objects
upon which they are applied.

One of the peculiarities of design in objects similar to those engraved in the accompanying plate, is a
close adherence, in the primitive forms to which ornament is superadded, to those curves and contours
which spring from a legitimate exercise of the potter’s art, and the natural modelling given to the clay
while it is upon the wheel, by his hand. There can be little doubt that the most beautiful forms in Greek
and Etruscan vases have been generated from this simple process of formation, and from the refined delicacy
of touch acquired by the potter during years of practice. It is not uninteresting to observe, in corro¬
boration of this view, that the perfect outline of some of the commonest objects of pottery contributed to
the Exhibition, from India, Tunis, Turkey, See., demonstrates the method by which contours, equal in grace
to those of Etruria and Magna Greeia, have been produced.

M. Zeigler is not the only artist in France on whom the celebrity of Bernard de Palissy has operated
in inducing a successful revival of obsolete productions, AIM. Landais and Avisseau, of Tours, have accurately
reproduced, in the present day, those quaint dishes, covered with skilfully-modelled and painted representations
of fruit, flowers, fish, &c., and coated with a rich vitreous glaze, which formed the especial delight of the
nobles of the age of the Renaissance. Whether such a revival quite coincides with our ideas of the utilitarian
application of plates and dishes, is a question upon which, considering the apparent popularity of these works,
it might be ungracious to enter further.

PLATE

* H. T : WOOD CABINET

tv MICHEi. w V. 'TT nr BER\ t .

- . \ 5 -• c - ‘ i. S. A •; Jte » U5: e. s»v kSOH . i «» • - s - t . • e te n

PLATK VII.

I'*V WETTLI OF BERNE, SWITZERLAND.

C . ^ ' ar * ous to ' s " !tl1 " ' Ul ll 1 ' u ‘ Continent supplies England, there are few which have been generally
received with more satisfaction than those elegant trifles in white wood, the profits on the production of which

contribute m no small degree to the comfort of a proverbially hardy and industrious race.

While a few of these fancy goods are imported from the Tyrol, the majority are brought into this
country from Switzerland. Appenzell in the canton of St. Gall, Brienz and Berne in the canton of Berne
and Grocden Grisons on the borders of the Tyrol, appear to be the principal seats of the manufacture
Some years ago, when travelling on the Continent was less in vogue than it Is in the present day
these objects, the execution of which formed principally an amusement, and scarcely an occupation, for tlm
mountaineers during the winter months, were comparatively unknown beyond the limits of the native
cantons ot their producers. Travellers, admiring the dexterity with which these trifles were fashioned,
commenced the purchase of them, as souvenirs of their excursions in the country. The shopkeepers to
whom the mountaineers had at first disposed of their ingenious productions, finding that a taste for them
was spreading among the visitors to their lakes and mountains, encouraged a more general production; and
when, m later years, Switzerland was overrun with tourists, the depots increased, and the manufacture grew
in extent and importance. The cheapness with which these elegant objects could be delivered to the

market, subsequently induced speculators to export them, and they are now largely introduced into England

Fi •ance, and Italy.

As the demand increased, the character of the objects improved. The quaint spoons, cups, salad bowls, & c .
of the self-taught artist, decorated only with uotchings, hatchings, and rude imitations of leaves and flowers,
have gradually given way to more ambitious and more cultivated attempts. Many of the productions in
the Great Exhibition which have emanated from the manufacturers of this variety of articles, display very

considerable knowledge of form, and graceful feeling for ornamentation; none, perhaps, equalling in those
particulars the object which we now engrave.

Much of the cleverness which especially distinguishes the Bernese carving must be ascribed to the
influence which was exercised over the art by Gottfried Mind, an eccentric artist, who was born at Berne in
1/(58, and died in his native place in 1814. Ilis representations in wood of every species of animal, and more
particularly ot cats and bears, are still eagerly sought for in Switzerland; and his little arrangements of

rustic groups and figures are characterised at once by remarkable truth of expression and a charming naivete
of composition.

In the production of the more ordinary specimens of this department of industry the tools employed are
of the simplest kind, the penknife being among the most important. In objects similar to that which forms
the subject of our engraving, it must be evident that more elaborate tools have contributed to the refined
execution with which the figures, animals, and other details are rendered.

A specimen of marqueterie by one of the Swiss exhibitors, M. Vogel of Thoune, in the canton of
Berne,—being a round table made of twenty-eight different kinds of wood, inlaid with 38,000 pieces,_

ESCRUTOIRE OF WHITE WOOD.

furnishes us with full evidence of the possession by Switzerland of woods suitable for producing the
variety of contrasted colours, which has been so successfully attained in the subject of our illustration.

Among the specimens of Swiss wood-carving contributed to the Exhibition which display the highest
perception "of character, we may particularly notice a small figure of Pere Girard, a Franciscan monk, carved
by M. Kessler, a sculptor of Fribourg.

The woods employed in these carvings are, for white, the spindle-tree and sycamore; tor yellow, box,
for brown, cherry; and for dark, walnut. These ingenious manifestations of the natural taste of the Sw N s
peasants have been largely introduced into England by Messrs. Evans and Son of Newgate Street, and

many other importers.

In the Escrutoire we engrave, manufactured by M. Wettli, an ingenious arrangement ot mechanism has
been contrived, by means of which it has been adapted to accommodate itself to the convenience of wiiteis
in either a sitting or standing position. The factory of M. Wettli was established in the year 18.37, and
gives constant employment to twenty workmen.

PLATE 8

f Rtf’*4} A v oi&bv DiR'

PISTOLS. ENGRAVED AND IN PAID WITH DAMASCENE WORK.

V l U L 0 A 0 A Q i- W A D R D

,^1-5*. '«,h-F.D *N!i Kj1)Llif*t 0 M P- 14M5SI. Kv fl^V t *0*..,»t HOGIH'HE.IU ** 1 rffc *

► Ht O’ 3Rli a i’ h .

PLATE VIII.

PISTOLS, etc.

BY Z DIO AG A OF MADRID.

I he reputation acquired by Spain tor the manufacture of the leading implements of war is as catholic,
in its sense of universality, as her faith. In our notice of Plate III. the celebrity of her Bilboa blades and
loleclo rapiers was duly set forth, in the present article we propose to notice her achievements in the pro¬
duction of fire-arms.

From Sir Samuel Rush Merrick’s work on Ancient. Armour we learn, that as early as a.d. 1325 the
Moors had attained a perfect command over the employment of the renowned “Greek fire;” under which
term there can be little doubt that a species of gunpowder was included by the middle-age writers, as well
as the ordinary balls of inextinguishable fire. At the sieges of Baza, Martos, Algesira, and Tarifa, Ismael
employed it at that period; and it appears that machines similar to those he is recorded to have used were
immediately known to the Spaniards, and designated by them “ dolia ignivoma,” or “ fire-flashing vessels.”
These instruments of discord were used in Italy in 1351, in England in the reign of Edward III., and in
France at the same time,—being spoken of in that country as “ guuute.”

The limits of the present notice will not permit us to trace the minute shades of difference between the
construction and orders of precedence of bombardons, periers, cannons royal, serpentine and bastard, culverins,
sacars, and minions, pedreros, pattereroes, &c., still less the peculiarities of those varieties of artillery
which were manufactured exclusively in Spain.

It was towards the middle of the succeeding century that portable fire-arms appear to have been
introduced throughout Europe. According to Billius, a learned Milanese, who lived at that period, hand¬
guns were first used at the siege of Lucca in 1430. lie describes the Lucchesi as having carried in their
hands a club, a cubit and a half long, to which were affixed iron barrels. These they filled with sulphur and
nitre, and by the power of fire, iron balls were thus ejected. In an entry of a roll of purchases made for
Holy Island the following item occurs,* “a.d. 1446, Bought ii. hand (/urines de ere.” From whence we
learn that they were occasionally made of brass. The rude hand-gun w T as soon refined into the harquebuse,
a w T eapon the invention of which is generally ascribed to the Italians. The chief improvements effected were
the additions, of a proper stock, bent and formed at the end so as to fit to the shoulder, and of what w r as
called the serpentine, a species of cock with a spring, which, on being released by a trigger, descended into
a pan of priming, carrying with it the end of the match, and thus leaving both hands free to steady the aim.

In 1585 these harquebuses had become so common in Spain, not only for the uses of war, but for the
purposes of sporting, as to have given occasion for the publication of an order in Council restraining the
cler°r from making use of them.f The harquebuses were soon divided into tw r o kinds, the long and short,—
the latter being called demi-hags. The former w^ere soon so far lengthened as to require fork-rests to steady
the gun upon; the latter were made smaller and smaller until they finally gave occasion to the origin of
pistols. This latter variety of arms is stated to have been invented at Pistoia in Tuscany, by Camillo Vitelli.

* Fosbroke, 11.911.

f “ Archabusio etiam dam iter Jaciunt aut in venationibus ne utantur clerici.”— Ducange, Gloss. I. 362, ed. liened.

PISTOLS, etc.

The musquet is of Spanish origin, and the skilful use of it rendered the infantry of Spam cel brate
throughout Europe. Authorities differ as to its having been used at the battle of Ibcoigne, m •>- ,
acknowledge its terrible effects when wielded by the forces of the Duke of Alva in the Netherlands, m 1569.

The spoil of rich weapons which accrued to England from the capture of so many of the Spanish v essels
on the occasion of the dispersion of the Armada, procured for this country a great variety of new types m

form* Stowe records a great lottery of costly armour and weapons which took place in St. Paul's Church¬

yard in the year following; and the collection formed by Queen Elizabeth, which probably originated the
Tower Armoury as an exhibition, is described by Hentzner of Nuremberg, who visited it in 1598, as consisting
of “many and excellent arms, as well for men as for horsesf in cavalry engagements. Many a Spanish
weapon is still existing in this country, taken from the wrecks upon the coast: of these some interesting
specimens were exhibited at the museum formed at Norfolk by the Archeological Institute in 1847.J Fiom
the gorgeous ornament with which everything manufactured by the Spaniards was decorated m the days of
their almost boundless riches, and from their knowledge, through the Moors, of all the processes of inlaying

and damascening, there can he no doubt that some of their fire-arms were of the most elaborate description.

It is justly remarked by the learned M. Labarte,§ that no “sooner had fire-arms become portable than
art was applied to their decoration. The barrels of harquebuses and pistols were enriched, like the armour
of the period, with delicate engraving and ornaments inlaid in gold and silver. In their adornment splendid
veneers were employed: ivory and wood, stained ot different colours, were made use of; frequently the
stock was covered with ivory of different colours; and subjects and foliage, &c., of extreme minuteness, were
engraved upon them. The sides of the lock and the cock, &e., were also richly decorated; on them orna¬
ments, arabesques, figures, in relief and even completely detached, were frequently carved.”

In the production of the specimens of Spanish fire-arms we have engraved, M. Zuloaga evinces consummate
skill, and we can imagine, to a military man, no more splendid offering than was made when “the Captain-
General of Puerto Ricco, the Count Mirasol, the General Don Celestino Ruiz de la Bastida, the Peninsular
regiments of Catalonia, Iberia, and the Asturias, and the regular Militia of the year 184(5, offered the princely
gift of this rich collection of arms to the Duke of Valencia, captain-general of the Spanish army.

# For particulars of the Spanish weapons, vide llewctt’s “ Ancient Armour.”

t “ Anna multa et egregia quam pro viris quam pro cqnis in equestri ptigna.” —Pauli IIentznkiu Itincrarium. Norib. 1029, p. 192.
t “ Memoirs illustrative of the History and Antiquities of Norfolk.” London, 1851.

§ “ Description des Objets d’Art qui com pose tit la Collection Debrugc Dmnenil, par Jules Labarte.” Paris, 1847, p. 307.

PLM t ?.

'TH[ MASSACRE OF THE INNOCENTS':
CARVED IN WOOD BY GEE RTS OF LOUVAIN

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PLATE IX

MASSACRE OF THE INNOCENTS

CARVED IN OAK, BY GEERTS OF ANTWERP.

Towards the latter half of the fifteenth century, the purity of Gothic sculpture had materially declined
I.i place of those graceful conventional lines, and that earnest, but chastened expression, which characterise the
works of the decorative sculptors of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, a more natural and forcible, though
less graceful treatment of the human figure, both singly and in groups, was introduced. It was, however,
reserved for the genius of Adam Kraft, Michael Wohlgemuth, Peter Vischer and his sons, Vcit-Stoss, and the
great Albert Durer, to create a new and more elevated style, by gradually expanding the angularity and

meagreness of German art in the early part of the fifteenth century into that dignity and beauty which
distinguished the Italian carving of the same period.

M hilst we are indebted to Adam Kraft for the beautiful Sacrament’s-Hmslein of St. Lawrence Church at
Nuremberg, we owe to Michael Wohlgemuth the elaborate carving of the Madonna and female saints which
decorates the high altar of the church of St. Mary at Zwickau. The celebrity of the latter artist is, however,
mainly associated with the influence which his taste exerted over that of Albert Durer. Peter Vischer and his
sons executed the celebrated shrine of St. Sebald in the church of that saint at Nuremberg; and whilst
the elder Vischer and Kraft imparted elegance of form and composition to works in stone and marble, it
remained for their friend Veit-Stoss to introduce the same qualities into wood-carving. In the numerous works
by that artist in the churches already mentioned at Nuremberg, and in the cathedral of Bamberg, he has
displayed an amazing command over the technicalities of sculpture in wood, and successfully represented some
of the most elevated passages of Holy Writ and legendary tradition.

Founded on the improvements introduced by these artists, a large number of carvings were executed
throughout Germany and the Low Countries. In the district of the Rhine, particularly, a high degree of
perfection was attained, not only in ecclesiastical wood-work, but in those rich and elaborate fittings which
decorate the halls of the various corporations and guilds. Among the best examples of the latter class, we
may especially notice the beautiful chimneypiece in the Town-hall at Bruges.

To this purer school of renaissance carving and arabesque decoration a mode of treatment succeeded, analogous
to that introduced into painting by Rubens, Vandyke, and those of their scholars in whose works fulness of form
fiequently degenerated into vulgar sensuality. Among the contemporary artists of Flanders whose works
occasionally exhibit a disposition to repress this tendency to exaggeration, it is but just to particularise the
celebrated Francois du Quesnoy, better known as Fiamingo, who was born at Brussels in 1594, and died fifty
years afterwards. The purity of his taste is strikingly manifested in the well-known statue of St. Agnes, in
the cliuicli of St. Mary of Loretto, at Rome. Among those, on the other hand, whose style of composition
was most sensibly influenced by the extravagancies of the school of Rubens, we may mention the names of
Verbruggen, Vervoort, Broecksent, De Sutter, Verschaffelt, and Laurent Delvaux. In spite, however, of fluttering
draperies and eminently theatrical compositions, a high order of beauty is frequently to be found in those wonderful
specimens of human labour, which, in the form of life-size figures and groups, supporting pulpits and decoratin'*-
confessionals, constantly arrest the spectator’s attention in the churches of St. Gudule at Brussels, St Bavon

THE MASSACRE OF THE INNOCENTS.

and St. Pierre at Ghent, St. Paul at Antwerp, and many others in Belgium. It is truly a matter of regret,
that those artists, who carried the manipulation of wood-carving to a higher pitch of perfection than it m
attained at any other time, or in any other country, should not have been gifted with happier conceptions, am

should not have lived in a period when a purer taste was indispensable to success.

In many of the cities in which the extraordinary works referred to have become objects of traditional

veneration, a’ desire has of late years arisen, for their repair and revival. To supply this necessity, the brothers
Geerts, of Antwerp, have laboured most successfully. Accommodating themselves, in their designs and
restorations, to the spirit of the spot in which their productions were to be placed, and uniting originality of
conception with a graceful selection of harmonious details, they have been enabled to restore with singular
success many of the ancient glories of ecclesiastical wood-work in the principal cities ol Belgium.

In their most important undertaking, the execution of the new stalls of the cathedral at Antwerp, the
Messrs. Geerts appear to have selected for their model the beautiful carvings ol the stalls m the church of
St. Gertrude at Louvain. Imitating those fine productions of the middle of the seventeenth century, more
particularly in the small detached groups which surmount various portions of the design, they have succeeded
in imparting to their elaborate work a freedom and beauty entirely their own. "While the architectui.il details
of the canopies are in a pure Gothic style, the multitude of subjects with which the stalls are enriched are

devoid of any affectation of antiquated drawing'. ’

Surrounding themselves in their studio with casts from the works of the great masters we ha\ e mentioned,
together with beautiful models of the architecture of the middle ages, the Messrs. Gents Innc foimed a huge
atelier, from which productions of extreme beauty are constantly proceeding. Among the important works
upon which they are now engaged may be mentioned a series of 260 statues in Stone, to be placed in the nit lit s
of the Hotel tie Ville at Louvain; and 29 panels, to be cast in bronze, for the new church of St. Joseph at
Brussels. The latter are in the style of Lorenzo Ghiberti, and are expected to rival the works of that artist
in the baptistery at Florence.

As illustrations, not only of the beautiful composition and artistic feeling which pervade the works of the
brothers Geerts, but of the delicate handling and execution of their carvings, no specimens could have been
more happily selected than those which they have contributed to the Great Exhibition. In the episode from
“ The Massacre of the Innocents/ 5 it would be difficult to imagine a more successful treatment of a devotional
subject, since it combines much of the religious feeling of the early Italian school, with a comparatively pure,
though slightly conventional style of drawing.

* The stalls referred to, both of Louvain and Antwerp, as well as many of the elaborate works ot the old Flemish carvers, arc delineated
with great, pictorial effect in Mr. ling lie’s “ Sketches in Belgium.”

■

PLATE 10

SPECIMENS 01- TURKISH EMBROIDERY

t>* iSD PiSiishtD |r

6h ' B ’ , ' Uf , HOC.fUPHtRv n r H

E QWttN

»t H D•< -v \

PLATE X.

SPECIMENS OF TURKISH EMBROIDERY.

Although the Turks have hitherto manifested no distinctive peculiarity of excellence, either in the design
or manufacture of common fabrics,—allowing themselves to he supplied with such articles by the more active
and energetic countries of Europe,—they nevertheless display a decided predilection for the results ot indigenous
labour, in those articles which are adapted for the use of the more wealthy and luxurious among tlieii
population. While common cotton goods and coarse muslins are supplied from England and Switzerland,
and cotton prints, shawls, and needlework ot an ordinary description, from France, the nathes of Tuikey,
in which country so much of the excellence of ancient Moorish art still remains, demote gieat labour and
ingenuity to the production of gorgeous silk stuffs and luxurious embroideries. The same amount of pei fcction
manifested in those exquisite dyes and processes of dressing which have made the Turkey morocco leather,
and the red cottons of Adrianople, celebrated throughout Europe, is bestowed also upon the embellishment

of the more elaborate articles of national costume.

The cotton of Turkey is not in any respect equal to that of India; and whether it be owing to the
imperfect apparatus or labour employed in cleaning it, or to some inherent defect in its nature, certain it is
that the finer fabrics, which serve, in Turkey, as a groundwork for the richest decorations of the needle, are
for the most part produced by the looms ol Persia and India. The muslin girdles and tuibans, as well as the
veils of the women, and those scarfs known as macramas , with which the Greek ladies are wont to cover the
upper portion of the bosom when they have occasion to make visits, are almost entirely formed of fabiics the
production of the last-named continent. The principal depot for these is at Smyrna, and at Constantinople
they find a market amounting, together with that of other Indian cottons, to scarcely less than from eight

to ten millions of piastres annually.

The silk goods of Turkey, which, as well as muslins, furnish the groundwork for costly embroideries, are
principally produced in the neighbourhood of Brousa, in Asia Minor; a city which of late years has acquired
considerable importance as the chief depot for the raw silk produced in the Turkish dominions. Very little
embroidery is actually executed at Brousa; the silk which is forwarded from that city to Constantinople
being generally consigned in the form either of twist or manufactured into plain fabiics. At Constantinople
silks as well as muslins are provided by the merchants to the principal hareems throughout the city. The
females, whose lives would otherwise be inconceivably monotonous, devote many hours daily to the
decoration of the superb costume of the wealthier inhabitants. r lhus it is we find that many of the
articles in which feminine taste and skill are conspicuously displayed, bear tickets indicating that they aie the
productions either of the wives, daughters, or widows, of inhabitants of the metropolis. I he beautiful manner
in which it has been found possible, in a material so exquisitely delicate as the finest muslin, to draw home
the threads which form the embroidered pattern, without distorting the regularity of the fabric, is truly
remarkable. The elegance of the patterns, and the richness and harmony of the colours in which they are
worked, convey a highly favourable idea of the national taste of the population. Whilst in Indian, in Greek,
and in Russian embroidery, the forms partake of a highly geometrical character, it is a peculiar feature in
Turkish designs that they incline rather to that style of pattern which in England is called trailing; that is,
one in which the shoots and irregular springings of nature are imitated, with but little modification.

SPECIMENS OE TURKISH EMBROIDERY.

The goods which are thus produced by the labour of the females of Constantinople find a very

considerable market at the celebrated fair of Balu-Khissar, a town situated about eighty-five miles north¬

east of Smyrna. This fair, which is one of the most considerable in the East, commences on the fifteenth of
August, and lasts fourteen days. Long trains of camels and mules arrive from all parts of Asia, and more
than 25,000 individuals are concentrated in the town and its environs. The bazaars are divided into

sections, in which the nations not only of the East, but of Europe, find active commercial representatives.
It is estimated that business amounting to twenty millions of piastres is annually transacted at this fair.

Some of the richest embroidered muslins in Turkey are manufactured for turbans—which are then
called abame —and also for the handkerchiefs in which the ladies envelope their rich tresses after they
have been disarranged in the bath, and previous to their receiving their usual elaborate plaiting and

dressing.

The two central specimens engraved in the accompanying plate are executed on fine muslin: the top
and bottom patterns exhibit the labour frequently lavished upon the enrichment of a material scarcely more
delicate than the ordinary towelling of this country.

*- l a r l ii

1) II [) !J P or VASE s X <

BY ‘Mini UN 1 ' ut stoki upum tf i m

'.til

• H»|l Nl’V'i bv >.» x ,11*

PLATE XI.

VASE AND OTHER OBJECTS,

BY MINTON OF STOKE-UPON-TRENT.

The elegant vase which forms the centre and most conspicuous object in this plate exhibits a highly successful
revival of that species of ware best known as Majolica. It may not be without interest if we offer a few remarks
upon the history of that variety of porcelain manufacture, since we have every reason to believe that this first
attempt of Mr. Minton’s is likely to be followed by many other specimens of a similar nature.

Whether Italy first derived a knowledge of the manufacture of Majolica ware from Majorca* from the
Gieeks, or from the Sicilian Moors, or whether that knowledge grew out of the refinements applied by Luca
della Robbia, at the beginning of the fifteenth century, to processes used at a much earlier period, it is now
almost impossible to determine. The ordinary earthenware of Tuscany and Umbria was during the fourteenth
century usually coated over with an opaque white clay, obtained from the province of Sienna, and generally
know n as terra di San Giovanni. The vase, thus covered, was sufficiently fired to reduce this external coating
to a state of buiscuit, which was then susceptible of being floated over with a species of glaze, with which any
variety of colour might be mixed. On being finally baked, the varnish and the colour became vitrified, and
perfectly unchangeable. By painting on the white coating in enamel colours, and covering them with a trans-
paient glaze, any variety of pattern could be produced ; and this latter modification of the process afforded the
basis upon which all the subsequent earthenware of Italy was manufactured.

I lie main improvement in fabrication introduced by Luca della Robbia, consisted in the substitution for the

old, clumsy, clay veneer, of a thin, opaque glaze, composed of tin and sand, with a small admixture of antimony and
other metallic substances *

At the beginning of the sixteenth century we find traces of an extensive trade in vessels of the kind referred

to, m many of the towns of Italy, and more particularly in the Duchy of Urbino. In Bologna, Gubbio, Perugia,

Rimini, Sienna, Spello, Civita- Castellan a, Ferrara, Forli, Asciano, Sec., a very considerable manufacture was carried

on. The last-mentioned town is regarded by Passerif as that in which the earliest evidences of any general system
of production are to be met with.

Wc find that in 1509 a patent was granted by Guid’ Ubaldo della Rovere, duke of Urbino, to Giacomo Lan-
franco, of Pesaro, for the application of gold to earthenware. It was, however, some years later that, in the small
town of Gubbio, Maestro Giorgio Andreoli originated a series of processes, which added materially to the reputation
foi ingenuity in ceramic production of which Italy was then commencing the acquisition. The works of this artist,
which are well known to connoisseurs, are usually inscribed on the back with the mouogram “ M°. G°.” Their
chief peculiaiity is that of aiery simple body, covered with tin enamel, and floated over with a white glaze, on
which, in free colours, the artist painted a design, the draperies of which glow with a brilliant ruby colour the
secret of the preparation of that pigment being known only to himself. On the completion of the painting, the
whole was frequently covered with a strong colourless glaze, almost identical in appearance with that formin''- the

* Vasari, “ Vita dci Pittori—Vita tli Luca della Robbia.”
t “ Istoria delle Pitture in Majolica.” Pesaro, 1838.

VASE, k'i'o., liY MINTON.

surface of tire celebrated terra-cottas of Luca and Agostino della Robbia. The art of thus decorating porcelain
was subsequently practised at Gubbio by Vincenzo, the son of Maestro Giorgio, who carried to a yet ngui

perfection the processes known to his hit he 1 .

Between 1520 and 1560 these wares attained their greatest degree of popularity. The choicest designs
of Raffaelle and Julio Romano being at that time spread abroad throughout Italy, by means of the engravings
of Marc Antonio and other masters, were soon transferred as subjects of decoration to the surfaces of the dishes,
vases, cisterns, goblets, salt-cellars, &c., with which the tables of the Italian nobility were abundantly supplied.
Over the forms and decorations of these objects the invention and refined taste of Timoteo della \ ite, one ot

Raffaelle’s favourite pupils, are recorded to have exerted a happy influence.

In the earlier examples of this art the colours are usually extremely vivid. In the later specimens the
white ground forms the field upon which arabesques and figures, outlined and shaded m yellowish or brownish
tints, and heightened only with faint colouring, are executed. In some late works of Majolica, or, as it is often
termed, Faienza ware, relief is added to assist the developement of ornamental objects ; and it was at Pesaro,
between 154 0 and 1560, that artists named Geronimo and Matteo produced a number of large chargers decorated
in this manner. Several artists of talent and remarkable facility contributed to the enrichment of these objects.
Batista Franco, Taddeo Zuccaro, Raffaelle Ciarla, Raffaelle dell Colie, Flaminio, and Orazzio Fontana of l rhino,
were among the principal of this brotherhood, and assisted in the execution of the celebrated services which
their patron, the reigning Duke of Urhino, presented to several of the principal sovereigns of Europe. Upon the
decline of the Duchy the purity of taste in these manufactures appears to have rapidly decayed ; and it is scarcely
possible to find a tolerable specimen of this kind of workmanship of later date than the year 1600.

As the limits of our article will not allow us to go into greater detail on the practical manufacturing
peculiarities of this interesting art, we must refer the reader for such information to the intelligent observations

of M. Brongniart.*

So free and original is Mr. Minton's version of Majolica ware, that we can scarcely refuse to it the merit
of o-reat novelty. Both in modelling and execution, it is a very favourable specimen of the productions ot his
celebrated manufactory, which was founded about sixty years ago by the father of its present proprietor.

The attention of Mr. Minton was directed to the revival of the art of Majolica, from the circumstance of his
having become the possessor of some specimens of that ware formerly in the possession of the Duke of Buckingham.
He was, however, for some time, at a loss for a satisfactory model upon which to make an experiment. In 1849,
two prizes were offered at the School of Design in the Potteries, by Smith Child, Esq., now M.P. for the Northern
Division of Staffordshire, for the best and second-best designs for a wine-cooler in the old Majolica style. Among
the competitors was Mr. Simon Birks, a young man who lias recently completed his apprenticeship with Messrs.
Minton and Co., and who had been a diligent pupil in the School from the time of its foundation. The model for
the vase we have now illustrated was furnished by him, and for it he received one of the prizes offered by Mr. Child.
The colouring of the vase has been somewhat modified by other artists, under Mr. Minton's direction.

The remaining objects introduced in the plate form portions of the exquisite dessert service which has
been purchased by Her Majesty (at a cost of one thousand guineas) for presentation to the Emperor of Austria.
As it is our intention to engrave hereafter some of the principal features of this splendid service, we shall at
present only notice the highly successful combination of form and colour which characterises the specimens
engraved.

* “ Traite ties Arts Ceramiques.”

■ .. i\ l -■ B

PLATE. 12

SPECIMEN OF INDIAN EMBROIDERY.

LONDON? PINTED AND PUBLISHED N C V" i £T 1 3 51 , BY DA / & SDN j_i 'hOCP.AP « £ p * ’

*£ vJUEHN

PLATE XII.

SPECIMEN OF INDIAN EMBROIDERY,

FROM DACCA.

The system of division of labour, which modern political economists have demonstrated to be the
only mode of successful production in the countries of Europe, has in India been known and practised

from a very remote period. There can be little doubt that, while the institution of castes in that country
originally sprang from political and social considerations, whoever framed the laws which regulate those
minute distinctions in society must have had some perception of the effect which such a grouping of the
various classes of the population would necessarily produce upon the arts of the country. All those

admirable results which the guilds and corporations of the middle ages produced upon specific arts and
manufactures, are constantly effected in the present day in the productions of India by the distinctions of
caste in that interesting country. The man who from his birth is destined to be a shawd-maker, a

goldsmith, or a muslin-weaver, has, from his earliest years, every faculty of his mind and every

physical quality of his constitution, concentrated upon the one pursuit, excellence in wdiich is to be at once
the standard of his social position, and his security for obtaining the necessaries and comforts of life.

Thus it is that the hands of the Hindoos have acquired that marvellous sensibility of touch, which alone
enables thread, of a tenuity scarcely equalled by that of Lisle, Brussels, or Mechlin, to be spun by their
delicate fingers. Thus it is that the designers of shawls and embroidery have learnt, from their earliest
infancy, the forms and tints of those patterns which have descended from generation to generation in the
families of their caste. This peculiar social combination necessarily affords them an opportunity for refining
on the works of their predecessors; and to the exercise of a consequent power of minute criticism w r e may

readily trace that extraordinary elegance, and perfect balance of forms and hues, wdiich to the civilised nations

of Europe appear altogether incompatible with the w orks of a people reared in a condition wdiich is commonly
regarded as approximating to barbarism.

Many authorities might be adduced from classic authors to show r the early acquaintance of the natives of
India with the weaving, dyeing, and printing of cotton goods ; and it is to the imitation of fabrics of a very
remote date, that England is indebted for one of the most important branches of its national manufactures.

Fine w r oollen stuffs, somewdiat resembling the best products of Norwich, are largely manufactured in the
north of India, and brought by the merchants to the important trading city of Delhi, from whence they are
carried down as low 7 as Dacca, and even to Calcutta.

The enrichment by embroidery of these plain stuffs,—which are generally of a rich red, blue, green, or
black colour,—is extensively carried on, both in Delhi and in Dacca; and gives employment to a great
number of skilful workmen. There is a marked difference between the embroidery of these tw r o cities, both

in the quality of the silk thread and in the length of the stitches. In that of Delhi the stitches are short

and cleanly w 7 orked, in a style somewhat resembling the Chinese embroidery, the silk thread being closely and
neatly spun. In that of Dacca, on the contrary, the stitches are long, and the silk employed is of a more
flossy character, excepting in those instances in which a special commission effects an alteration in the

SPECIMENS OE INDIAN EMBROIDERY.

general character of the work. As may naturally be inferred, the embroideries of Delhi are more highly
esteemed by the natives, and are consequently more expensive, than those of Dacca. The latter city is,
however, famous for its embroideries of net and muslin, which are, perhaps, better known to Europeans than
any other variety of Indian workmanship in this department of industry; and in the specimen which forms
the subject of our illustration, the native workman has executed, in gold thread and flattened wire, upon a piece
of fine Cashmere stuff, a very elaborate pattern, the design of which must be gratifying to all who can appreciate
the ingenuity of the artist in adjusting so skilfully the relative quantities of pattern and ground, and the
harmonious combination of the various lines and ornaments.

The manufacture of the gold thread, in which this species of embroidery is executed, is largely carried on at
Boorhampore. A description of the process employed in that district has been furnished to the “ Illustrated

Catalogue ” of the Great Exhibition, by R. N. Hamilton, Esq., the British Resident at Indore; and the scattered

notices in Mr. Montgomery Martin’s “Eastern India,” give us reason to believe that the same process is adopted
throughout that portion of the peninsula. The operation is described as follows :—Four common bricks are
laid on an earthen floor, and a layer of charcoal is placed at the bottom. Upon these a clay crucible containing
a quantity of silver is deposited, and being covered over entirely with ignited charcoal, the fire is fanned
by a hand -punkah (a piece of matting about four inches by nine), to increase the heat; additional charcoal

being occasionally added in small quantities. In somewhat less than an hour the silver melts, and is run

into moulds, by means of which it takes the form of small rods. A sheet of gold is then well washed, and boiled in
fresh lime-juice and water. Whilst it is still warm, it is rolled completely round the rods we have described;
and the process of plating the silver with gold is thus completed. The next operation is that of drawing the rods
through perforated steel plates, in a manner similar to that practised in English wire-drawing; and thus gradually
lengthening them until they have obtained the requisite tenuity of wire. To receive still further com¬
pression, they are passed between small rollers, and Battened on an anvil by the blows of a hammer, until at
length they assume the form of exceedingly minute ribbons. A thread of silk is then suspended with a spindle at
the end, a corresponding spindle is attached to one of these golden ribbons, and the spinner who sets both in
motion so regulates the contact of one with the other, as to cause the gold to completely cover the whole of the
silk thread. Thus prepared, it is done up in skeins, and sold to the embroiderers.

As we contemplate engraving in subsequent plates specimens somewhat analogous to that now under
examination, we purpose, in our notes upon them, to analyse briefly the principles which regulate the excellence
of patterns similar to that given in the present illustration.

PUTE 13

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A GROUP IN BRONZE BY VITTOZ.OF PARIS

LONOJ N . PR NTtO AND PU3 l' 5H£Q NOV *15’" 1851 S S DAV SD N ~ 0 - 1 - • h f- - 7 j Th f 1 •' i F N

F BELF L Pj I

PLATE XIII.

OBJECTS IN B B 0 N Z E,

BY VITTOZ 01 r PARIS.

That the art of casting in bronze was known at ail early period in France, is testified by the execution of
the bronze doors which the celebrated Suger caused to be made for the Cathedral of Notre Dame; and by the
magnificent tombs of Evrard de Fouilloy, who died in 1223, and of Geoffrey cPEu, who died in 1273, both
Bishops of Amiens; as also by that of John, son of St. Louis.

Although bionze was extensively used in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, an examination of the principal
ielics of mediaeval ait leads to the conclusion that it did not ac(pure any great degree of popularity in France,
eitliei in the fourteenth or fifteenth centuries. Ihe impetus given to the art of bronze-working in Italy by the
labouis of Ghiberti, Donatello, Verrocchio, Pollaiuolo, and others, served as the foundation for that perfection to
which the processes of manipulation were carried by Benvenuto Cellini. The first works in bronze, introducing
the Renaissance style into France, were executed by that great artist, at the court of Francis the First; and there
is every reason to believe that his bas-relief of Diana, which was designed to decorate the celebrated Chateau of
Fontainebleau, was the model from which Germain Pilon, Pierre l’Escot, and others, derived those inspirations
which led to the creation of the afterwards famous school of French bronze-castinw

Few artists of eminence, or important works, are to be traced during the seventeenth century, but we can
scarcely believe the old traditions to have altogether passed away; since the salons of the Quartier St. Germain
are still decorated by numerous small objects in old red bronze, such as groups of boys in the style of Fiamingo,
nymphs, &c., which can only be attributed to the latter part of this period.

Whilst the exquisite statuette modelling and high finish in chasing of Clodion and Girardon have caused the
names of those artists to be venerated by all collectors of objects of vert it at the present time, they contributed
no less, in the prosperous days of the old regime , to the perfection of those groups which were so highly prized
by the ancienne noblesse.

The disastrous tide of misfortune which swept oyer those aristocratic patrons of the art could hardly fail
to change the character of the art itself. It is not surprising, therefore, that under the new constitution the
Florentine traditions of Girardon, and the Arcadian graces of Clodion, should have been transformed into the
conventional imitations of antiquity with which the fertile brains and ready pencils of Percier and La Fontaine
ministered to the parvenu grandeur of the Chaussee cPAntin.

The great works of ancient art of which Italy was despoiled were transported to Paris, and no doubt contri¬
buted to the fashion which set in of decorating the apartments of the citizens with objects as would-be classic
as the Christian names, but at the same time as essentially French as the nature, of the bourgeoisie , their
proprietors.

The house which earliest distinguished itself in ministering to this craving for the reproduction of antique
bronzes was that of M. Thomire. Founded in 1793, this establishment continued for many years to exercise a
powerful influence on the progress of the art. In the Exposition of 1806 it obtained the gold medal, and has
ever since maintained its early reputation. M. Deniere’s establishment may be regarded as the principal rival
of this great house. Their competition reached its climax in 1827. Whilst, in the Exposition of that date,
M. Thomire displayed a grand service executed by him for the town of Paris, consisting of seventeen groups

OBJECTS IN BRONZE.

of allegorical figures, admirably chased, representing the union of Peace, Commerce, and Industry, M. Deni ere
contributed an exquisite work representing Parnassus, surmounted by the Muses, and supported by a group
of Chimeras.

These Great masters of the art were not, however, without competitors; for, at the period last mentioned,
the founding, chasing, gilding, and silvering of bronzes, gave occupation to 105 separate establishments in Paris,
employing not less than 840 workmen. The total value of the productions emanating from these manufactories in
every year amounted to 5,250,000 francs, of which more than one-third were destined for exportation.

Many of the most beautiful statues of antiquity, and of the cinque cento period, have been reproduced with
extreme truth and delicacy, by the adoption of the important processes of reduction introduced by M. Collas ;
and these works have materially contributed to improve the public taste. The perfection to which this system
has been brought is admirably illustrated by the beautiful series of bronzes contributed to the Great Exhibition
by M. Collas, in conjunction with M. Barbedienne.

In examining any large series of French bronzes, it is especially gratifying to notice how completely the great
artists of the present age have ministered to the requirements of manufacturing enterprise. M. Vittoz, who has
produced the clever group which forms the subject of our illustration, displayed in the Great Exhibition works
modelled by Coustou, Clodion, Oudou, Pradier, Feuchere, Pascal, Combervatt, Combett, Claymmans, and other
celebrated sculptors.

Thus aided by the genius of the artist, the manufacturer in bronze is enabled to carry to perfection the
inspirations of the former; but in doing so he is materially aided by the accomplished workman, whose refined
skill in the manipulation ot chasing places him almost upon a level with the sculptor.

Ihe bronze trade in France is divided, theoretically, into three distinct sections:—the first consisting of
founders, by whom colossal statues and objects of large dimensions are executed; the second, of those by whom
bronzes d art are produced; and the third, of those by whose labour articles of furniture, such as lamps, clocks, &c.,
are provided. In the first ot these classes, the most prominent houses are that of Eck and Durand, by whom
the immense bronze doors of the Madeleine were cast, and that of Soyer, Inge, and Son, who cast in a single jet
the celebiated capital of the Column of July, the weight ot which exceeds 10,000 killogrammes. In the second
class, MM. Aittoz, Gharpentier, Susse, Pailliard, and Matifat, occupy a distinguished position. Most of these
houses contribute more or less to each of the three departments; and there are so many eminent manufacturers
engaged in the third exclusively, that it would be invidious to mention any of them in particular.

The cup, which occupies the foreground of our illustration, has been cast after an antique model found at
Pompeii. The group of boys, the chasing of which displays the highest delicacy of finish, is one of the most
admirable compositions of M. Feuchere, and is worthy to serve as a model for the handling of this material

As we must return t0 the sul >ject. of bronze-work in observations on subsequent illustrations, we shall reserve
toi the present our notices ot processes, colouring, &c.

Pi Al i

VAl A FKQHThf HiivAi MAHU1 A\_TU*pY Al oKVKI. $

"*' m p,, "' ,r h, r.fcvtso* • t rj > h

PLATE XIV.

5 ?

FROM

ROYAL

AT SEVRES.

The outline of the graceful vase which forms the subject of our present illustration, has been derived from
one ot those specimens of the art of Magna Grecia, the perfection of which has obtained great and universal
celebrity for that department of the Museum of the Studij at Naples which is devoted to their preservation,
ihe application, however, ot colour and subject to the decoration of this beautiful example, is perfectly
original, and due to the tasteful fancy of M. Hamon. The skill with which this accomplished artist has
deviated fiom the antique, just to a sufficient extent to attain freshness and a peculiar delicacy of effect,
without in any way losing the purity ot the source whence his inspiration has been drawn, reflects the highest
ci edit upon him. Each ot the conventional ornaments introduced is perfectly adapted to that particular
poition of the contour which it is employed to decorate; and in this respect the design merits the attention
and emulation of those students who are wont to lavish the charms of ornament, without regard either to
propriety of subject or fitness of application.

In subsequent plates it is our intention to engrave other specimens of the beautiful productions of the Royal
Manufactory of Sevres ; and we therefore propose to divide the few remarks we shall offer upon the history of
this, the most celebrated industrial institution of France, into a consecutive series of notices. On the present
occasion we shall confine our observations to the circumstances under which that kind of porcelain generally
known as Old Sevres was produced.

In the year 1710, the attention of the chemists and manufacturers of France was excited by the pros¬
perity and fame with which the successful experiments of Bottcher had crowned the Electoral Manufactory of
Porcelain at Meissen, in Saxony. Attempts were consequently made to rival the imitations of Oriental China
with which Saxony then ministered to the wants of aristocratic collectors ; and as the natural materials which
had been discovered by Jean Schorr, ot Schneeberg, near Dresden, were wanting in France, efforts were made to
attain, by a combination of various substances, those results which the union of kaolin, or china-clay, and feldspar,
had already produced in Saxony. These experiments resulted in the production of a new composition, which is
usually known as pate-tendre, or Old Slvres, in contradistinction to the pate-dure, discovered at a later period.

The first manufactory of the former description of china was established at St. Cloud near Paris, by a
M. Morin, and was conducted in 1718 under the direction of M. Chicoineau. Some of the workmen who had

been brought up at this factory subsequently started on their own account at Chantilly, and in the year 1740
proposed to the Marquis d’Orry, then Minister of Finance, to reveal to him the secret of the composition of
their porcelain. Neither the amount of their knowledge nor the specimens they produced were, however,
sufficiently favourable to induce the Minister to become the purchaser of their secret; nor were they able to
maintain for any length of time the proprietorship of their establishment at Chantilly. They were succeeded by
M. Gravant, a man of superior ability to his predecessors, and it was from him that the same Minister purchased
the secret in the year 1745.

A company was immediately formed at Vincennes for carrying out the processes thus acquired; and it
subsequently obtained a monopoly for thirty years. Louis XV., who had displayed much interest in the success

VASE, “LA G LOIRE.’

on
ensuin

of the scheme, became possessed, in 1753, of a share in the concern, amounting to one-third; and conferred
the establishment the title of the Royal Manufactory. We learn from M. Jules Labarte* that in the
g year the manufactory had arrived at so high a degree of perfection that the workshops at Vincennes
were found to be too limited in their extent for the efficient conduct of the works ; and it therefore became
necessary to transfer the operations to Sevres, where a vast edifice had been constructed expressly for the
purpose. In 17(10 the King paid off his associates in the undertaking, and became sole proprietor of the

manufactory, to which he accorded a capital of nearly 100,000 livres.

The composition of the “body” by means of which the beautiful and now most costly specimens of the old
pdtc-tendrc were produced, owed much of its perfection to the skill of the chemists, Macquer and Du Lauraguis.
According to the opinion of M. Brongniart, more research, and more talent, have been required to compose
this artificial porcelain, by complicated and delicate means, than were necessary to obtain a successful result in
the hard porcelain, or pdte-dure , which results from the simple mixture of two natural substances, kaolin and
feldspar. M. Dupinf remarks, that the base of the former description of porcelain consists of powdered nitre,
sea-salt, alum, soda, gypsum, and sand, mixed together, and reduced to a fritt in the furnace, and subsequently
combined with stone and chalk. The covering, which constitutes the glaze, is composed of litharge, silex, and
carbonates of potassium and soda, repeatedly combined, reduced to powder, and recombined. M. Brongniart’s
workJ contains scientific formulae for the exact proportion of these various ingredients.

In this material were executed the majority of those charming vases, cafetieres, dejeuners, cups, saucers,
dishes, &e., which graced the boudoirs of the petits-maitres and dames de qualite of the court of Louis XV.;
and the King himself, as well as his favourite mistresses, set such an example as greatly increased the popularity
of the objects produced at the Royal Manufactory.

In reference to the colours of this beautiful species of china, it may be observed, that the Vincennes blue,
so well known to collectors, is an exceedingly deep rich tint, almost approaching to a black, and that
M. Gouttiere and many of the most exquisite chasers of the period excelled in mounting, in or-moulu, objects
so coloured. The Rose Dubarry was a very tender pink colour, manufactured expressly for the lady whose
name it bears. The celebrated turquoise blue, and the pale green, which are both much prized by connoisseurs,
attained, in Old Sevres, a degree of perfection and delicacy which, though often imitated, has even to the present
day remained unsurpassed.

At first the range of ornament applied to the decoration of these objects extended little beyond interlacing
lines of ribbons, and small bouquets of flowers. Subsequently, figures of Cupids, shepherds and shepherdesses,
birds, sheep and other animals, were added. M. Labarte enumerates the principal artists who, either as modellers
or painters, were attached to this establishment, from the time of its elevation into a Royal Manufactory. He
states, that at first the artistic direction of the works was entrusted to Falconnet and Baclielier; and subse¬
quently to Bozot, Langrenee, and Corneille Van Spaendonck. Among the artists who distinguished themselves
during the reigns of Louis XV. and XVI. may be mentioned Merault, Bouillat, Parpette, Micaud, Pithou the
younger, Niquet, and Sioux, for flower-painting ; Armaud and Castel for birds; Chulot and Laroche for
arabesques; Rosset and Evans tor landscapes; Dodin, Caton, Asselin, and Pithou the elder, for figures, portraits,
and other subjects. The little statuettes modelled by Falconnet have now become exceedingly valuable.

It is by no means difficult to ascertain the dates of the objects executed during the earlier periods of
the manufactory of Sevres. From the year 1753 to 1792, the different objects produced were almost invariably
marked by a monogram or cipher, consisting of two L’s, interlaced and formed in blue lines ; the year in
which the object was executed being indicated by a letter placed in the space formed by the intersection of
the L’s. Thus, the letter A, so introduced, indicates the year 1753; the letter B, the year 1754; and so on
down to the year 1 776, which is indicated by the letter Z. The productions of the succeeding year were
marked by two A’s; and the system of marking by double letters was continued in annual alphabetical order
until the year 1793, which bears the mark of two R’s. Many other marks were added, which serve to verify
the different articles as having been decorated by particular artists ; but we must again refer the reader to
the works of Brongniart and Riocreux for minute details on this branch of the subject.

Having thus sketched, though necessarily very briefly, the circumstances under which the original pate-

tendre was executed in France, we shall, in our next notice of the manufactures of Sevres, turn our attention
to the pdte-dure.

Description des Objets d'Art, qui composed la Collection Debruge Dumenil. par Jules Labarte." Paris 1847
t Introduction to the Report of the Central Jury on the Exposition of 1834. t ■< Traite des Arts Ceramiques."

♦ .

■

PLATE 15.

M DIGBV WVAi r D'REX T

WINDOW ORNAMENT FROM TUNIS

LONDON.PRINTED AND PUBLISHED NOV MS"MSS., 3V DAy fc.sON LITHOGRAPHERS TQTHE QUEEN

F. BEDFORD, v th

PLATE XV.

W I N D 0 W 0 R N A M E N T,

1hE numerous portions ot vases, &c., and the fragments of sheet-glass preserved in the Museum of the
Studij at Naples, bear ample testimony to the fact that the ancients were in the habit of employing that
material, not only for vessels, but also for those glazing purposes to which we now so largely apply it.

It is, however, obvious, from the high prices which they are recorded to have given for glass, that it was by
no means commonly used by them.

This interesting question, however, affects only in a minor degree the remarks we are about to make; for
it is certain that whatever facilities the Roman artificers may have possessed in the manufacture of glass, the
art fell into complete disuse, if, indeed, it was not absolutely lost in Italy, so soon as those calamities which
ultimately destroyed the Roman Empire fell upon the Imperial government.

Hence, in the earlier ages of the Church, perforated marble slabs were used for the purpose of admitting

light, and yet partially screening from observation, and obstructing surreptitious entry; so as, in fact, to

supply the places of the windows of later construction. A remarkable instance of this peculiarity was

discovered in the chapel attached to the Catacombs, in the Cemetery of San Calisto, near the Church of San

Sebastiano, at Rome;* and there is every reason to believe that this example was by no means singular in the
same locality.

In Byzantine architecture a like practice was adopted; and in the older portions of the churches at

Ra\enna, as well as in that of St. Mark at Venice, and St. Ambrose at Milan, there are numerous pierced slabs
of marble, which have no doubt at one period served the purpose of admitting light and air. In the highly
interesting Church of Sta, Fosca, in the Island of Torcello, near Venice, the use of semi-transparent slabs of

alabaster, sufficiently thin to admit of the passage of a good deal of light, exhibits one of the earliest attempts
to improve upon the former practice.

Perforated windows of a description similar to those we have indicated, as still to be traced at St. Mark's
and at Ravenna and Milan, are among the most characteristic features of the edifices erected under the
Saiacenic rule, forming at once a pleasing and useful ornament to the interiors of those structures. If,

theiefoie, as there is every reason to believe, the elements of Moorish architecture were based upon that of

B\ zantium, the source of these windows, so prevalent in the former species of architecture, may easily be traced
in the existing remains of the latter.

If, on the other hand, as has been contended, Moorish architecture derived its chief elements from the
tiaditions of India, transmitted by way of Persia, the probability of that opinion may be supported by the fact
that, in both the latter countries, windows of this nature are to be found, even to the present day, in common
use. Among the objects contributed to the Indian department of the Great Exhibition were two charming
specimens of perforated stone-work, destined to be used as windows or screens; and from the sketches of
various travellers in Persia, it is clear that objects of a similar nature are common throughout that country.*)*

In adopting the use of these primitive windows, the Moors were no doubt compelled, by a deficient supply

# Boldctti, “ Osservazioni sopra i Cirueterij,” vol. i. chap. 9, plate 2.
•f See “ Voyage en Perse, par Eugene Flandrin et Pascal Coste.”

U Agincourt, “ Ilistoire d’Art par ses Mon muons,” plate 13.

WINDOW ORNAMENT, FROM TUNIS.

of ,l« materials in which their original models had .men eaeen.ed, to produce imitation, of themm pkateta
Among the earlier and more perfect specimen, of this kind, w. may cite the numerous example, whtch

be met with in the mosques and tombs of the Caliphs at Cairo’ ,

The Moors continued the use of perforated plaster windows after the employment of glass was adopted,

frequently covering the perforations with the latter material. The openings were generally arranged m a
regular geometrical pattern, somewhat in the style shown in our present illustration, and various coloured
glasses were attached on the external side, so as to form a regular mosaic pattern. A very graceful example
of this effective mode of decoration may be observed at the Alhambra, in the windows looking fiom tie a
of the Boat into the Court of the Fishpond. Although the glass has been broken away from these windows,
the original pattern may be ascertained with comparative certainty, by some recesses on the opposite side of

the court, which were painted to correspond with them.f

Many refinements were introduced to enhance the effect produced by windows of this description. The

perforations were, and even now are, invariably in an oblique direction, descending from the external face of the
plaster, so as to transmit directly the full brilliancy of the light. The glass was fixed to the outside by means
of plaster, worked to a face flush with the outer surface of the glass. The perforations generally spread
inwardly in all directions from the external aperture, which is invariably kept of small dimensions, and by this
arrangement the coloured light illumines with its tints the adjacent surfaces. This plan is adopted with a
most happy effect in the specimen from which our plate has been taken; and we are assiu ed that similai

windows are common throughout the East.J

A system of decoration somewhat analogous to this was frequently applied to obtain light thiough
domes and other large vaulted surfaces, as may he found in some of the earliest specimens of Moorish ait.§
In these examples the vault is usually perforated with a number of small openings, regularly distributed over
the exterior, so as to admit of their being connected with lines, or fillets, which convert them into centres,
around which are disposed various geometrical enrichments, frequently covering the whole exterior of the
dome. Though small on the exterior, these holes enlarge as they pass through the thickness of the roof,
frequently expanding on the interior surface, into the form of stars, hexagons, octagons, and foliated forms.
The small pieces of coloured glass which cover the outer apertures admit sufficient light to brightly illuminate
these foliated openings, and the internal effect of the cupola is thus most gracefully heightened. lhe
same arrangement of geometrical lines and patterns that we have described on the exterior of the dome is
employed also to connect the internal perforations. It is found in practice, that by bedding the pieces of glass
(which may be of any irregular shape) in the plaster, the roof is kept perfectly water-tight.

A highly successful attempt to introduce the above system of decoration into this country was made
about ten years ago by Mr. Owen Jones, to whose kindness we are indebted for several of the preceding
remarks. In a mansion constructed from the designs of that gentleman in the Queens Road, Kensington
Gardens, he caused a vaulted skylight to be executed, which displays internally a most elaborate pattern,
being covered on the outside with pieces of coloured glass of irregular shapes bedded in plaster in the manner
already described. The application of two or three coats of paint to the exterior of this skylight has been
sufficient to preserve it in a perfectly sound and water-tight condition up to the present time.

In our notice of Plate IV. we alluded to the singular preservation of the patterns of the most successful
periods of Moorish art among the present inhabitants of the northern coast of Africa. It is, therefore, only
necessary here to point out the exact similarity of style which is to be observed between the window from
Tunis now selected for illustration (which is of a kind in daily use in the streets of that city), and
examples in the Alhambra and other monuments of Saracenic antiquity.

numerous

* See Coste, “ Monumcns Arabe du Kaire,” and Hay’s “ Cairo.”

t See “ The Alhambra,” by Owen Jones, vol. ii. plate 45; and “ Drawings and Sketches of the Alhambra,” by J. F. Lewis.
t s ee “The Oriental Album,” by E. Prisse.

§ See “ Essal sur V Architecture des Arabes et des Mores en Espagne, en Sicile, et en Barbarie, par Girault dc Prangey.” Paris, 1841.

■

PLATE.

INC IAN ELEPHANT TRAPPING.

Li.' N DC N. PRiNTLD

Bl'S-.EC NOV? 15™ 185!. S'* DAY & SON. LITHOGRAPHERS ~C THE QUEEN.

PLATE XVI.

INDIAN ELEPHANT TRAPPING.

The gorgeous specimen of embroidery which forms the subject of this plate, conveys some faint idea
ot the florid style of ornament which decorates the beautiful offerings made by His Highness the Nawab
Nazim of Moorshedabad to Her Majesty the Queen of England. It forms part of a splendid velvet covering,
worked with gold and silver, descending from the lower part of the howdah, or small pavilion, which, borne
upon the back of an elephant, serves to shelter its rider from the intense rays of a tropical sun.

A magnificent howdah of this description, carved in ivory, and completely fitted up for use, with all its
accessories, together with a complete suit of elephant trapping, forms the principal portion of the present to
which we have alluded. To this truly regal gift the Nawab has added a superb throne, or native
reception seat, with its canopy, and a frame-work of silver, serving to support the pillows. Two mookals
(emblems of rank), and two palanquins, one richly fitted up for state occasions, and the other without a
canopy, complete the present. The style and character of these elaborate objects admirably illustrate the
Oriental splendour with which the native princes make their visits of pomp, and their progresses of parade.

The state trappings of an elephant consist of a large cloth, which completely covers the body of the
animal, and falls down to within a short distance of his feet. In the present instance this covering is of
velvet, embroidered all over, in a style similar to that exhibited in the accompanying plate. Upon this cloth
the howdah, or pavilion, is placed, the frame-work of which serves to support a canopy, beneath which
the prince or noble takes his seat. Behind rises a distinct and less lofty canopy, which is occupied by an
attendant, whose duty it is, with a plume of feathers, to whisk away the insects which buzz around, and,
but for his interference, would much annoy his lord. The dexterity with which this duty is performed, is
a theme of admiration to all who have witnessed it. In front of the howdah, astride upon the neck of
the elephant, and furnished with a goad, by means of which he directs the movements of the animal, sits
the driver. Over his head is stretched an awning, supported by two rods projecting from the lower part
of the howdah. In front of the driver, and covering the head of the elephant, is spread another piece of cloth,
embroidered even more richly than the rest of the trappings. On each side of the animal’s ears, and almost
concealing them, hang long cords of gold and silver twist. From each side of the howdah depends a gorgeous
piece of embroidery, partially covering the great cloth already mentioned ; and from one angle of this smaller
or uppermost cloth our illustration is taken, serving but imperfectly to represent the extreme brilliancy of the
original, the gold of which is highly burnished and of the greatest purity. The beauty of the patterns worked
in bullion which enrich the velvet, and the woven silk, or kincob, which forms the covering of the howdah,
is most remarkable; and, when lit up by the intense rays of an Eastern sun, we can imagine the whole panoply
to present a gorgeous appearance, investing the movements of the unwieldy animal with as near an approxi¬
mation to grace and dignity as its clumsy action will permit.

From the earliest periods, the elephants of India have been peculiarly identified with regal magnificence.
When Alexander the Great first came in contact with them, and perceived their splendour in state and their
utility in war, he determined upon introducing them into Greece. The experiment, however, proved unsuccessful,
since the expense and difficulty of maintaining them offered an insuperable obstacle to his project. Introduced
at a subsequent period into Italy, by the armies of Pyrrhus, however imposing their appearance, they proved
an unequal match for the ingenuity of Hannibal and the valour of the Roman soldiers. Degraded from

INDIAN' ELEPHANT TRAPPING.

their dignified and warlike position, they sunk into the occasional ornaments of imperial triumphs, and
ultimately, in the rehm of Nero, mounted the stage in the public games, under the yet more equivocal guise
of rope-dancers. In the middle ages, a celebrated elephant was presented by the Soldan of Babylon to the
Emperor Frederick the Second ; and King Henry the Third had also an elephant, which was publicly exhibited

in England.*

The commercial intercourse which existed between India and Italy was not confined to the importation
of elephants into the latter country; since Pliny tells us that, in his time, the Roman citizens devoted no less
than fifty millions of sesterces annually (more than 400,000/.) in procuring for themselves the luxuries of the
East. Among these we have reason to believe that silks and silk stuffs formed no inconsiderable item. It is
not indeed impossible, that the splendid embroideries of India, thus made familiar in the West, contributed
to that taste for elaborately decorated garments, which was transmitted to the rest of Europe from Byzantium;
and may, even at the present moment, be exerting an influence over the productions of Muhlhausen and
Manchester.

A peculiar interest attaches to any objects produced at Moorshedabad, on three accounts. In the first
place, since that city, and its adjacent Port of Cossimbazar, are celebrated as the most important foci of the
silk-trade in India; serving not only as the greatest depot for raw silk, but as the principal manufacturing
centre, from whence many of the most distant countries of the Peninsula are supplied with twist and made-up
goods. The Cossimbazar Corahs are, indeed, largely imported into this country : most of what are known
as “real India silk” pocket-handkerchiefs emanating from that district. In the second, because from 1704 to
1750, Moorshedabad was the capital of Bengal; and may, therefore, be regarded as serving to illustrate
the most important native industry of that celebrated province; and, in the third place, because when
Moor shed, in 1701, removed the seat of government from Dacca to his new metropolis, to which he gave
his own name, he brought with him the most skilled artificers of Dacca, on the traditions of excellence
descending from which all the art of that portion of the country appears to have been based.

* Eo-hrotc, 1014.

■ .

___ PLATL 17

J » V ' \ f I K . M I E . r M

v Mi'.Bv * Vi. • : • j , t

thlhuntlr a statue in marble

BV JOHN GIBSON, ESQ. R A

►

U)VJ0>. HttNUlt f IU,S .to UfCMVIft*

1 , iVr>A\,i anN ltTrt0C) ^ A(j|fc ^ to T -If C I. E E.I

PLATE XVII.

T H E H U N T E H,

BY GIBSON OB ROME.

T 11 l beautiful statue lepiesented in the Plate affords a remarkable instance of the account to which
the highly educated artist is frequently enabled to turn the casual combinations of form and movement which
Nature provides abundantly, for the benefit of those who have the ability to appreciate and adopt the
inspirations she offers. I he simple incident of a boy struggling to restrain an impetuous hound caught
the eye of the accomplished sculptor of this admirable work, as he was walking in the streets of Rome. Ilis
attention was at once arrested by the vigour of the contrasted action, and the idea of embodying it in marble
immediately suggested itself to his mind. On arriving at his studio, Mr. Gibson made a sketch from his
recollection of the incident, and shortly after commenced modelling it. The result is shown in the statue
which forms the subject of our illustration, and which was unquestionably one of the most beautiful works
of art contributed to the Great Exhibition; displaying as it does, in the most striking manner, the idealism
with which the poetic imagination of the artist has invested the subject which formed the basis of his labours.
The “ Hunter” was originally executed for Mr. Sandbaeh of Liverpool, and the Earl of Yarborough is to be
congratulated on the possession of the exquisite “replica” from which our drawing has been made.

Manifesting in this production a profound acquaintance with the works of Scopas, Praxiteles, and the
other great masters of classic art, availing himself to the utmost of all the resources of execution displayed
in their most successful efforts, and yet maintaining an originality essentially his own, Mr. Gibson has in this
statue preserved all the best qualities of antique art, without allowing any peculiarities of mannerism to
detract from its great merit. The graceful arrangement of the varied lines of the composition, the vigour of
the action, the perfect balance of the figure, the manly beauty and activity of the Athlete, the eagerness of
the hound, the anatomical detail expressed, but not overwrought, and the admirable finish of the carving, all
contribute to the perfection of a whole, eminently calculated to maintain that national reputation for excellence
in works of the highest order of sculpture which the genius of Flaxman first acquired for this country through¬
out Europe.

A remarkable coincidence between these two great masters in art—Flaxman and Gibson—is to be found
in the habit, common to both of them, of idealising from accidental combinations of pose and form. An
inspection of any of those charming note-books in which the former was wont to store the materials from
which his compositions were subsequently elaborated, will demonstrate the felicity with which his genius
seized and elevated the simplest actions of childhood and of youth. Girls skipping, boys playing, mothers
fondling their children, and the most ordinary domestic incidents, were seized by his tender fancy and
transferred to paper by his graceful pencil. Many of Gibson’s most celebrated compositions, such for instance
as the “Wounded Amazon falling from her Horse,” “Jocasta parting her angry Sons,” and a “Nymph
dancing a Cupid on her foot,” were in like manner adopted from the artist’s casual observation of the
scenes which were passing around him.

The few incidents which have disturbed the even tenor of Gibson’s artistic life have been so gracefully
sketched by one of the most accomplished female writers of the present day, that for information upon those

THE HUNTER.

points, we may content ourselves with referring our readers to that delightful memoir.* On this occasion we
prefer to notice a few of the leading circumstances of his artistic, rather than of Ins personal, career

The relation of Gibson in point of time to the principal sculptors of the English school may be best

appreciated by remembering that at the time of his birth, in the year 1791, Roubiliac had been dead nearly
thirty years; Nollekens, at the age of fifty-four, was in the height of his reputation; Banks was somewhat
older exhibitin'' in that year his celebrated monument to the only daughter of Sir Brooke Boothby; Bacon
about the same age, and equally popular; Flaxman in liis thirty-sixth year; and Chantrey, a boy of ten years

old in Derbyshire.

The greatest influence over the youthful energies of Gibson was undoubtedly exercised by Flaxman, to
whose honour it must be recorded, that he was among the earliest of the artist race to appreciate the talents
of the rising sculptor. There can, indeed, be no doubt that his advice materially strengthened Gibson in Ins
determination to resist every inducement to remain in England, and encouiaged him to study at the
fountain-head the finest monuments of ancient art.

Gibson arrived at Rome in 1817, having produced several works of great promise before leaving England.
Among these may be especially mentioned a cartoon of “The Falling Angels,” which lie executed when he
was but about eighteen, and which is now preserved in the Liverpool Institution. About the same time he
also produced a somewhat similar cartoon, the subject being taken from Dante. Eien at that eaily age he

had acquired considerable facility in modelling, which is testified by his exquisite reliefs of “ Cupid Bound,”

and a “ Recumbent Psyche,” both designed for the centres of chimney-pieces. Ilis early acquaintance with
Roscoe doubtless contributed to foster that profound devotion to Greek art, which may be traced in all his

works.

Already a skilful draughtsman and modeller, with a mind expanded by converse with friends so illustrious as
those we have mentioned, and with his whole soul intent upon the study of his art, Gibson presented himself,
in his twenty-sixth year, to the celebrated reviver of Italian sculpture, Canova. The liberal offers of assistance
made on that occasion by this great artist and noble-minded man, and the independence manifested by the
young Englishman, are alike honourable incidents in artistic biography. With such intensity did Gibson avail
himself of the kind advice and instruction of Canova, that, for the first three years of his residence at Rome,
he never missed attendance in the studio of his director for a single night. “ Then,” said he, in a letter
quoted by Mrs. Jamieson,—“ then, for the first time in my life, I received such instruction as I really needed,
and learnt the practice and the law's which govern sculpture. The compositions I had executed at Liverpool
were the productions of a vivid imagination which knew no bounds. All the designs I made at this time were
to be within those rules which marble demanded. It was then I found how limited sculpture is.”

From the period of his leaving the studio of Canova, in the year 1821, up to the present time, Gibson
has occupied the same atelier in the Via della Fontanella at Rome. On the death of his “noble master,” he
placed himself under Tliorwaldsen, and benefited by his instruction.

Among the earliest w r orks executed by Gibson may be enumerated, “ Psyche borne by the Zephyrs,” first
executed in marble for Sir George Beaumont; and a group of “ Mars and Cupid,” purchased by the Duke of
Devonshire, his first distinguished patron, and now at Chatsw r orth. Mrs. Jamieson tells us that u among the
drawings he first showed to Canova, there was a sketch of the meeting of Hero and Leander. Struck by the
grace and passionate feeling of the sketch, Canova desired him to model it in bas-relief. The Duke of
Devonshire ordered this also in marble, and it still adorns Chatswortli.”

In all these early works, the training of the school of Canova is to be distinctly traced; and it is delightful,
after the lapse of years which has separated the pupil from his master, to hear the affectionate respect with
which the former still repeats the counsels of the latter. The advice that Canova constantly impressed upon
all in whose progress he felt interested, was to study Nature, learning to study her aright by a constant
reference to the antique. It has been our privilege to hear Gibson acknowledge that this advice has been his
constant rule of practice; and the beauty of the numerous productions which have issued from his studio
during the last thirty years, bears unequivocal testimony to its justice and value.

On the aitistic peculiarities of Gibson * woiks, we hope to offer some remarks to accompany an engraving

of one of those charming specimens which evince his profound acquaintance with the proper conditions of
bas-relief.

* “Art Journal” vol. xi. p. 139.

^-ATE 16 ,

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4,< •-•.uRA>6T Ah .

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PLATE XVIII.

A GROUP OF OBJECTS IN GLASS,

CUT AND

ENGRAVED BY GREEN OF LONDON, BACCHUS OF BIRMINGHAM,
AND APSLEY PELLATT OF LONDON.

There are probably few of the staple manufactures of the country with the processes of which the public
are more generally acquainted, than with those of the glass trade. The ductility and plasticity of the material

in its heated state the skill with which the workman is enabled to mould it to the requisite form_the

picturesque effect of the glowing furnaces, and of the numerous workmen busily plying their avocations, and
hurrying to and fro with masses ot the glowing metal —all contribute to charm and interest the spectator of the
Aaiied opeiations carried on in the glass-house. It would, therefore, be probably repeating a thrice-told tale if we
w ci c to dv\ ell, in this notice, either on the constituent elements ot which glass is composed, or on the ordinary
processes of its manufacture. Those, however, which were peculiar to the celebrated works of Murano, near
Venice, are of so interesting a character, that we hope to be enabled to devote to them a separate notice. For the
present our remarks will be confined principally to the great improvement in taste which has taken place during
the last few years, in the manufacture of the ordinary objects of domestic use.

Among those whose labours have brought about this satisfactory result, there are few who have been more
successful than the three firms by whom the elegant objects engraved in the accompanying Plate have been
produced; and if we add to theirs the names of Messrs. F. and C. Osier, Rice Harris and Co., and Lloyd
and Summerfield of Birmingham, and Messrs. Richardson of Stourbridge, our list will represent the leading houses
in this department of production.

The establishment of Mr. Green, which w^as formerly conducted by the late Mr. Brumby, has long been
noted for the excellence of the taste which has presided over it. Through its influence many of the most
attractive novelties and graceful forms which have of late years acquired popularity in London, have been introduced
to public notice. The beauty of form, and the exquisite refinement of engraving, which characterised not only
the objects we have selected for representation, but the whole of the articles contributed by Mr. Green to the
Great Exhibition, reflect the highest credit upon Mr. Daniel Pearce, the principal manager of that gentleman’s
works; from whose designs the decoration has, for the most part, been executed. In the completion of the
articles so designed, some of the most skilful glass-cutters and engravers of the metropolis, and particularly
Messrs. C’oles, Keene, and Pye, have been engaged. It is the more satisfactory to be enabled to record the names

of these skilful artisans, since, until very recently, a belief has existed that our manufacturers have been compelled
to have recourse to foreign assistance for the highest class of engraving on glass.

The firm of Messrs. Bacchus and Sons is one of the largest contributors to the supply of table-glass
throughout the country; and well sustained, in the Great Exhibition, that reputation for beauty and originality of
form which their previous display in the Birmingham Exposition of 1849 had obtained for them. In the form
of their wine-glasses and decanters especially, Messrs. Bacchus have succeeded in rivalling if not excelling
the most charming productions of the Great Parisian establishment at Choisy-le-Roi. They w r ere also among
the first to revive in England many of those processes for the production of twisted and filagree glass, which
had fallen into neglect since the days when the workmen of Murano ministered to the luxury of the Venetian
nobles.

A GROUP OF OBJECTS IN GLASS.

To Mr Apsley Pellatt the art of glass-working is indebted, not only for many of the most remarkable
improvements which have been of late years introduced into its various operations, but for the most mteresung

record which lias yet been published of the peculiarities of the manufacture.*

From the historical notices which, in Mr. Pellatt’s work, precede that minute description ot processes, to which
we must refer such of our readers as desire to be initiated into the manufacture of tins material, we gather

a few interesting particulars. .

< 5 tow informs us,f that the Fryars’ Hall (Crutched Friars) was converted into a glass-house for ma ung

drinking-vessels, which, with 40,000 billets of wood, were destroyed by fire in 1575. The manufacture had been
set up in 1557, and was the first of the kind known in England. Pennant, in quoting this fact, adds, that the
finest flint-glass was first made at the Savoy; and the first plates for looking-glass and coach-windows m 10/3,
at Lambeth, under the patronage of George Villiers, duke of Buckingham* Mr. Pellatt remarks, however,
upon these authorities, that the English manufacturers were for a considerable time much inferior to the \ cnctian,
“for, in 1635, Sir Robert Mansell obtained a monopoly for importing the fine Venetian drinking-vessels. I he
art of making these was not brought to perfection in this country till the reign of William the Third.”

At a period contemporary with the first establishment of the glass trade in London, there is reason to believe
that it was also introduced at Stourbridge in Worcestershire; in which situation it has continued to flourish to
the present day. Local tradition ascribes its introduction there to a family from Holland, whose name is believed
to have been Hensell. From that period, its progress, though slow, has been remarkably steady, and the great
glass-works of Birmingham may be considered as off-slioots from the primitive establishment at Stouibiid_,e.

From occasional representations to be met with in the works of Hogarth and othei aitists of that peiiod, and

from the curious old specimens occasionally found in the corner-cupboards of old farm-houses and cottages
throughout the country, it is evident that the forms which were then most popular presented a remarkable
affinity to the lighter specimens of Dutch and Flemish glass. Subsequently the public taste took a moie
substantial direction, and manufacturers appeared to rival one another in using glass in the densest masses and
heaviest forms. Elaborate cuttings, in unartistic patterns, scored over the surfaces of every object; and it became
almost as difficult to drink out of one of these clumsy wine-glasses as it was dangerous for any one possessed
of other than the strongest arm to pour out wine from the ordinary form ot decanter.

Within the last ten or fifteen years, a considerable reformation has taken place, and glass is now generally
employed in that thin, light, and refined proportion so admirably suited to its delicate and fragile nature.

It is satisfactory to be able to recognise the just appreciation which is now beginning to be entertained
of the beauty and consistency of those forms which result from the ordinary operations of the glass-blower’s art.
What can be more graceful than the primitive form ot the common wine or oil-fiask ? Those simple paits which
are essential to the construction ot a comfortable drinking-glass are now constantly letained in all then simplicity
and integrity. The bowl, the stalk, the knop, and the foot, are no longer blended in disagreeable curves, but are
allowed each to assert their own proper office; and the skill of the artist and engraver is called in rather
to decorate than to disguise them. Several of the specimens w r e have selected exhibit most favourably this
peculiarity, and bear testimony to the extreme beauty of the art ol engraving on glass.

In concluding our notice, we cannot do better than by extracting a fiwv remarks from Mr. Pellatt’s work,
illustrating the peculiarities of this branch of art-manufacture. “ Copper wheels and finely-pulverised emery,
mixed with oil, are used to execute the outline and ground of the modern engraver’s work; and for the polished
work, lead wheels and very finely-pulverised emery are employed. Coarse patterns for hall-lamps are engraved
by the glass-cutter’s smoothing-wheel. The contrast of the polish of a w'ood-wheel upon a ground roughed by
sand is often effective, though the range of pattern is somewhat curtailed by the large size of the cutter’s wheels
rendering it difficult to execute curvilinear designs. The Venetians practised a curious art of engraving with
the point of a diamond, or broken steel-file. This simple process w r as no doubt employed anterior to engraving
by the lathe. To this it probably gave w r ay, as the accurate artistic effects of the lathe far surpass the crude
work of steel or diamond-etching : Etching by fluoric acid has been introduced, but its bite is not sufficiently
rough, and is not found effective for general purposes. Pleasing effects are produced by engraving through
an outer casing of coloured glass into an interior white, transparent, or enamelled glass, usually afterwards de¬
corated with gold, and painted in arabesques or other patterns. This work is chiefly the produce of Bohemia,
Bavaria, and France.” We may add, that it lias recently been executed at Mr. Pellatt’s and other English
glass-works wdth complete success.

* “ Curiosities of Glass-making. By Apsley Pellatt.” London, 1849. f “ Survey,” 293. + Pennants “ London.” 5th ed. p. 377.

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PLATE XIX.

FOUNTAIN AND ORNAMENTAL GATES IN CAST IRON,

BY THE COALBROOKDALE COMPANY.

Those evidences of the skill of the iron-founder which abounded throughout the mechanical department
of the Great Exhibition, displayed the high degree of perfection which English manufacturers have attained
in the present day, in the production of exceedingly large castings, of perfect precision of form, and
homogeneity of texture. The objects, adapted for every domestic purpose, and for the reproduction of works
of art, afforded equally convincing proofs of the excellence to which the more artistic applications of the
material have been brought, and its capabilities as a medium for rendering, in cheap and permanent form, the
happiest inspirations of the artist.

The application of iron to such uses is comparatively modern; and great credit must be given to the
Coalbrookdale Company for the spirit with which they have brought to bear the unrivalled resources of
their establishment in the elaboration of works of sculpture of considerable pretension. So vast are the operations
of that celebrated company, and so important the products it delivers to the market, that we feel it our duty
to offer to our readers a short notice of its origin and progress.

Coalbrook Dale is situated at a short distance from Madeley, in Shropshire, in a district, the geological
peculiarities of which render it eminently eligible for the establishment of an iron-foundry,—both minerals and
water abounding in its vicinity. These natural capabilities were taken advantage of at an early period ; and
we find that in the time of Charles I. iron-works had been already established there for some time, and were
in the possession of a Royalist family of the name of Wolfe. The property subsequently changed hands, and
in the reigns of Anne and George I. and II. we find it had been transferred to a Mr. Fox, who converted
the establishment into a large manufactory for grenades and cannon-balls.

In 1707, Mr. Darby, a manufacturer of Bristol, took a lease of the works, which at that time had dwindled
to a single furnace and foundry. He considerably enlarged the works, and carried on the manufacture of
kitchen utensils, and other articles, which were cast by a process peculiar to himself.

It was, however, through the genius of his son, a man of remarkable scientific attainments, that the repu¬
tation of the foundry was placed on a permanent footing. By his energy and perseverance, many difficulties
were overcome, and he may be admitted to have worthily attained celebrity, since it was through his influence
that the first iron tramway for coal waggons was laid down in England, and the first iron bridge constructed.
Assisted by a Mr. Wilkinson, he erected, in the year 1779, that celebrated bridge over the Severn, near
Madeley, which has conferred its name upon the adjacent market town of Ironbridge.

From that period to the present, the works at Coalbrookdale have increased rapidly in extent and importance,
and at the present time, under the able management of Mr. Crookes, they furnish employment to about four
thousand individuals. This vast number of workmen comprises every gradation of intelligence, from the master
who controls, to the boy who assists in hewing the coal to feed the furnace. Clerks, artists, modellers, carvers,
pattern-makers, moulders, furnace-men, casters, finishers, smiths, fitters, japanners, painters, gilders, bronzists,
and decorators, all contribute to the elaboration of that extraordinary series of objects which are constantly
issuing from this establishment.

Every possible variety of those smaller articles which enter into the daily consumption of the great mass

FOUNTAIN AND ORNAMENTAL GATES IN CAST IRON.

of the middle classes, are made at Coalbrookdale. Stoves, fenders, chairs, vases, inkstands, card-baskets,

scrapers, &c., form the staple manufacture; hut, in addition, numerous large works, of a more ambitious class,
such as'the Fountain and Ornamental Gates now engraved, and the extraordinary Dome, which occupied so

prominent a position in the Great Exhibition, are frequently produced.

The point of view in which we especially must take occasion to commend the Coalbrookdale Company,

is in reference to the energy and liberality with which they seek to employ and reward the highest class of
artists. The beauty of such productions as the Fountain we engrave, the “ Eagle Slayer, and other works
of a similar class, do credit alike to Mr. Bell, the sculptor, and to the Company. We cannot but regard them
as the beginning of a very important branch of industry : and so soon as scientific chemists shall ha^e discovered
a material which, superseding paint, shall effectually protect iron from oxidation, without destroying the

perfection of its surface, or the sharpness of its angles, we have no doubt it will be very largely employed in
the formation of objects of the highest class of art.

Those only who are technically acquainted with the extreme difficulty attendant on the conditions of
sand casting, can realise the care and labour necessary to the production of any work of such a character;

since the slightest under-cutting entails a great amount of labour in the preparation of what are called loose

cores , which are moulded in sand, and require to be adjusted with extreme delicacy, so as to allow the molten
metal to be run in, in order to produce exactly the requisite form. In large castings the various parts frequently
have to be made separately, and adjusted together. The skill acquired by the fitters in concealing these

junctions is very great; and it requires a practised eye to detect the existence of a well-finished joint.

Considerable experience is required on the part of the designer, since provision must be made by him to
ensure that the contraction of the metal while cooling shall proceed uniformly over the whole of the casting,
since otherwise the portions which retain their heat longest would tear away from those which had set

most quickly, and thus the work would be spoilt. On the intelligence of the pattern-maker, too, very much

depends, since he has to make allowance in his patterns for the amount of shrinkage, which varies constantly
in proportion to the scantling, and quality of the iron used.

There are few points involved in greater obscurity than the exact period at which iron was first cast in
England. It is certain that the use of this material was well known both to the Romans and the Saxons; and the
smiths of many districts attained great celebrity. their skill being evinced by many remains which have descended
to our own days. There is, however, little ground for believing that the practice of casting iron in sand
was introduced earlier than the middle of the sixteenth century. To that period the style of the fire-dogs which
decorate some of the old mansions of our nobility unquestionably points. Tradition asserts that the railing
which surrounds St. Paul’s Cathedral was among the earliest applications of cast iron to architectural
purposes upon a large scale.

It may appear superfluous to remark upon the great extent to which cast iron has been employed in
recent times, in structures of every description; or upon the crowning illustration of its adaptability to such
purposes, afforded by the building for the Great Exhibition of 1851.

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PLATE XX

The beautiful and extremely interesting pattern which we offer in the present Plate, mainly as suggestive
to the fair sex of an agreeably conventional arrangement of ornament in embroidery, has been executed on
'ebet by Aimenian ladies of the town of Tifiis, in the Caucasus. It forms part of a series of similar
elaborate objects, forwarded by the Count Woronzow as a present to his sister, the Countess of Pembroke.

The most cursory examination of this beautiful collection would convey to the minds of all who are
interested in such matters a sense of their identity of style with that which so peculiarly characterises Greek
01 Byzantine art. It is impossible not to recognise a reproduction of the leading types of the latter style
in the combats of animals, the singular birds, the frequent introduction of clustered pomegranates, and the
1 ude imitations of the acanthus-leaf and the caulicoli of classic art; as well as in the brilliancy of the colours,

and the redundancy of the gold edging used to define all the outlines, which arc features alike characteristic

of Byzantine and Russian embroidery.

I he preservation of the outward types of Byzantine iconography, through the medium of the Greek
Church, is forcibly illustrated by the paintings of Saints with which the screens of Russian churches are still
decorated, and by the figures and ornaments worked in the coarse enamels so universally treasured in that
empire as amulets. It is, therefore, not surprising to find those peculiar constituent elements which form the
bases of Byzantine arabesque and foliation manifested in the Caucasian ornaments now before our readers.

There is abundant evidence to show, that in the earlier days after the transfer of the seat of empire to
Byzantium a taste for luxury pervaded the corrupt society of that city. All classes sought with avidity the
richest fabrics and the most precious furniture ; silks were woven and embroidered with the greatest varietv
ol designs ; flowers, animals, and birds, with incidents from the life of Christ and the legends of the Meno-
logion, were depicted on the most costly stuffs. St. Asterius describes the tunics and mantles then in use as

being covered with a prolusion of figures, amounting, in one instance, to as many as six hundred; — a degree

oi prodigality and luxury which caused him to exclaim that “ the dresses of the effeminate Christians were

painted like the walls of their houses.” So great, indeed, and so universal, was the taste for these objects

of personal adornment, that St. John Chrysostom denounces its pernicious influence, declaring that in his time
“ all admiration was reserved for the goldsmiths and the weavers.”

In spite, however, of the denunciations of the Saints, and the calamities which subsequently befell the
Greek Church, that establishment has never ceased to impress the senses of its devotees by a bountiful display

ot the richest colouring and gilding. The splendour of the dresses of the priests, and the richness of the

ecclesiastical hangings, were universally in accordance with the gorgeousness of the golden mosaics which line
the walls of the churches. Wherever the Greek priests went, gold and ornament appear to have travelled
with them ; and hence it is that we find, in the most remote districts of Russia, fabrics of the richest materials
and most elaborate design, expressly destined for the service of the Church.

The taste for embroidered decorations, thus imported into Russia from Byzantium, was not confined to the

SPECIMEN OF RUSSIAN EMBROIDERY.

clergy; for an examination of the plates in the great Imperial work on the Antiquities of Russia proves that
the robes of the ancient Czars were decorated in a style of lavish splendour which could scarcely have been
exceeded. It is evident, also, from other works illustrative of Russian Costume, not only that the diffeient
races throughout that vast empire indulge, on festivals and state occasions, in a profuse display of embroidery,
but that many districts possess a style of ornament peculiar to themselves; doubtless modified from the original
Greek type by the circumstances of their affinity to and intercourse with the surrounding tribes. The Oiiental
element has, no doubt, exerted a favourable influence on Caucasian embroidery; since the constant tiaffie which
passes through the Caucasus, from Persia and Turkey to the manufacturing districts of Russia, and vice versa,
must have familiarised its inhabitants with Oriental customs, and has very probably tended to maintain a
predilection for this luxurious art.

One branch of the art of embroidery, which has long been universally popular in Russia, is that of the
embroidery of leather. We learn from M. Erman* that “the inhabitants of the town of Toijok aie all engaged
in making various articles of Russia leather, which they either embroider with gold and silver, or unite in
patterns of different colours. These productions have lately become an article of the Russian export trade.
The Russians learnt this art from the Tatars, whom they soon surpassed; and the name ‘ Kasan boots,’ now
usually given to the boots and shoes made in Torjolc, points to a Tatar origin: for, among the Russians,

< Kasan’ was originally the land of the Tatars. The leather used in this manufacture is not prepared at

Torjok, but is brought from the capital.” Of this variety of Embroidery many admirably executed specimens
were contributed to the Exhibition; but as they displayed no very striking beauty or peculiarity of design, we

have not considered it necessary to engrave any of them.

* “ Travel* Russia, Siberia, by Adolf Ernian, translated by W. D. Gooloy. ISIS.

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PLATE XXL

COFFRET, OR JEWEL-CASE,

CARVED IN IVORY, EXHIBITED BY MATIFAT OF PARIS.

This beautiful casket, which, from the purity of its form and the delicacy of its execution, is worthy

to have graced the toilet-table of a Faustina or a Popprea, is the design of M. G. Dieterle. This young artist,

was appointed principal designer to the Royal Manufactory at Sevres, immediately after the Revolution of
1848. He is favourably known to the Parisian public, not only as having originated many of the most
admirable objects in the Sevres department of the Great Exhibition, but by his compositions for the decoration
of the Louvre. In conjunction with M. Seehan Dupleschm, he has also contributed designs for much ot
the striking scenery, which has procured universal approbation, for the spectacles of the Grand Opera and
other theatres of Paris.

The successful execution of the design now engraved has been presided over by the refined taste ot

M. Matifat, who himself received an artistic education, having been articled at an early age to Yechte, the
celebrated sculptor and chaser in metals. Succeeding to the establishment of his father in 1842, he considerably
extended its capabilities ; and bringing to bear upon his business the experience of his education, was enabled
to elevate the productions of his atelier to the highest range of artistic excellence. In the last Parisian

Exposition he was awarded a silver medal; and his works received most favourable notices from the French
papers, the “ Art-Journal/’ the “ Journal of Design,” &c. Among the principal objects which lie has
executed may be especially noticed two splendid cabinets, in the style of old boule, for which he received a
commission from Sir Watkin William Wynne, Bart.

M. Matifat’s contributions to the Great Exhibition were especially distinguished by their originality,
and the amount of thought bestowed upon their fabrication. Whether we regard the variety of outline of
his lamps, the forms and processes of ornament which decorate his vases, or the harmonious combination
of lines in his small bronzes, it would be unjust to refuse him credit for at least as much freshness and
power of design as was displayed by any other exhibitor in the same departments of industry.

The coffret, or casket, now engraved, is a charming specimen of the revival of the species of art known

to the ancients as chryselephantine; that is, one in which the sculptor produces his effect by the combination
of ivory with gold and other metals. We propose, in the present notice, to give a brief sketch of the history

of that art among the ancients, as introductory to the subject of recent and actual ivory carving.

The many references in Holy Writ to the trade in ivory, and the singular relics of sculpture in that material
which the Assyrian researches of Mr. Layard have brought to light, carry back to the remotest periods the
records of the abundance of that material, and the skill which had been attained in the art of carving it.
We cannot, therefore, be surprised to find classic authors designating that mode of sculpture, which consisted
of a mixture of gold, wood, ivory, See., as “ the ancient ” style. Its origin is by these writers usually ascribed
to Dcedalus. Two sculptors, whose existence is less fabulous—Dipsenus and Scyllis of Crete—are recorded to
have worked, not only in the Toreutic manner, but to have made the hair of their statues in ebony, and
the buskins in ivory. At the temple of Dioscuros, at Argos, the most ancient statues of this kind were to be found ;
and from the rude beginning they displayed, there can be little doubt that the most exquisite Greek chryselephantine
statues were subsequently elaborated. Twenty statues of gold and ivory, “ executed in the ancient style,” were

COFFRET, OR JEWEL-CASE.

contributed to the decoration of the Heraeum of Olympus by the two brothers Doryclidas and Me don, pupils
of the last-named artists.

Pausanias speaks highly of a series of statues representing the Hours, which were executed in ivory by Smilis,
a sculptor, who lived about 560 years b.c. These figures were represented as seated on thrones, and were placed
beside a statue of Themis, one of the most celebrated productions of Doryclidas.

About 525 years before Christ, Calachus produced a statue of Diana at Sicyon, in gold and ivory, which,
though somewhat hard in style, was much admired. Endieus worked in the same manner, and executed a
celebrated winged Minerva, principally in wood, and a statue of the same goddess in ivory, at Erythree. Ilegesias,
or Ilegeas, succeeded, about 491 b.c. ; and, somewhat later, Calamis executed a figure of /Esculapius, in gold
and ivory, at Sicyon. This city, indeed, appears to have been highly celebrated for this species of art, since
the statue of Juno of Argos was produced by Polycletes, a native of Sicyon,—so able an architect, and so
good a sculptor, that one of his statues was regarded by his contemporaries as the standard of proportion by
which the excellence of similar works was generally estimated. This artist lived about 459 years b.c.

In approaching the age of Pericles we meet with a remarkable concatenation of circumstances, tending to
make this period the culminating point of chryselephantine art. Seneca relates that the philosopher Democritus,
who lived about this time, discovered the means of softening ivory; and, under the immortal Phidias, Athens
and other cities of Greece were embellished with a number of colossal statues in this style. The artistic life
of Phidias probably extended from about the seventy-fourth to the eighty-eighth Olympiad. His renowned
Minerva of the Parthenon was finished in the second year of the eighty-fifth Olympiad. A just idea of the
grandeur of this statue, and the technical peculiarities of its execution, may be formed from an examination of
INI. Quatremere de Quincy’s admirable restoration of it. In the first year of the eighty-seventh Olympiad, Phidias
completed his great Jupiter in the same style.

Among the most celebrated pupils of the last-mentioned artist, we find the names of Alcamenes of Athens,
Scynnus of Scio, and Eucadmus. A Bacchus, by the former of these, was very generally admired. Theocosmos,
who studied in the same school, commenced a colossal Jupiter Olympus at Megara, of which he was only able to
complete the head, the remainder having been executed in terra cotta and plaster.

From the period of this last-named work (about 347 b.c.) a long interval occurs, in which a practice of
covering statues with a species of encaustic varnish of white wax was adopted,—probably to give the effect of
ivory, and to avoid the labour and expense entailed by the employment of that material. Praxiteles (about
330 b.c.) brought the latter process to perfection.

dhe art of sculpture in ivory, which thus appears to have declined considerably in Greece, was extensively
adopted in other countries. Thus we find that, in Egypt, the ship of Ptolemy Philadelphus was adorned with
ivory statues, wonderful in their workmanship and magnificence; and thus it was that Nicomedes, taking
Bithynia, between the years 27!) and 251 b.c., executed several works in the same style.

Towards the year 170 b.c., Antiochus Epiphanes, the great protector of learning in Syria, endeavoured
to revive this among other arts in Greece. lie employed Cossutus, a Roman architect, to continue the erection
of the temple of Jupiter Olympus at Athens, causing a great number of ivory and gold statues to be made
there. It was his desire to place the Phidian Jupiter in the temple at Jerusalem, but, failing in that attempt,
he succeeded in producing a colossal Jupiter at Antioch, in imitation of that of Phidias. Excited, probably,
by this revival, there is reason to believe that the sons of Polycles (to whom Winckelmann ascribes the Borghese
Hermaphrodite) made a Minerva Cranea, in gold and ivory, near to Elatea.

The first work of this kind which we find mentioned as executed at Rome was by Pasiteles, a Greek
artist, who settled there about seventy-five years b.c. Among his productions in the ancient style was' a Jupiter
in ivory, for the temple of Metellus. There is little ground, however, to suppose that ivory statues were popular
m the eaily ages of Rome; since it is not till we approach the Christian era that many traces can be found
of the existence of the art. The Olympian Jupiter was yet existing at Athens in the reign of Caligula, a.d. 37,
and that monarch is recorded to have been anxious to procure its transport to Rome. Under the auspices
of the great reviver, Hadrian, many chryselephantine statues were executed at Athens; and down to as late
a period as a.d. 150, the art continued to be occasionally practised. From that time, however, the connexion
between ivory and the precious metals appears to have ceased; and the practice of ivory carviim is only
to be traced m its application to small objects, such as the consular diptyclis, &c.

Of the peculiarities of style which distinguish the early Christian carvings, and the successive steps which

lead from them to the refined productions of Jean Goujon and Du Quesnoy, it will be our duty to speak on
a future occasion. 1

SiLK BR OC A Dt$_ BY CAN; i-b! LL , HAKRlSOK & t LGY o , uF 5 FM T A L f i ELDS, FOR H • .7 E.LL J A Yi tS &. C?. OF LONDON

AND BY VANNER & SOD OF SP1TALF1ELDS

LQKD3H PptNTEO AND PUBLISHED DECT 15^1651 BV DAVISON.

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PLATE XXII.

SILK BROCADES,

MANUFACTURED BA r CAMPBELL, HARRISON, AND LLOYD, OF SPITALFIELDS, FOR
HOWELL, JAMES, AND CO., OF LONDON, AND BY VANN Ell AND SON, OF SPITALFIELDS.

The brilliancy of colour and finished execution of the two silks we have engraved, bear satisfactory
testimony to the perfection which the processes both of dyeing and silk-weaving have attained in this country.
Although the examples exhibited by Messrs. Howell, James, and Co., were excelled in elaboration by a few
productions, such as the extraordinary silk contributed by Messrs* Lewis and Allenby (the manufacture ot
which involved the use of no less than 30,000 cards and 100 shuttles), they illustrate even more satisfactorily
the staple condition of the best class of silk goods of Spitalfields production.

It is a curious evidence of the inconstancy of that fickle goddess, fashion, that the style of these patterns
expressly produced for the Great Exhibition—is already passing out of vogue; and smaller ornaments, and
flowers of more tender colours, are rapidly superseding them in popularity. For the purpose ot illustrating
a series of such fluctuations, we had examined many of the patterns ot past years; but so constantly did
the same elements of ornament recur in them, that it would have been difficult to have classified the motives
of their design, and impossible, without numerous diagrams, to have conveyed any idea of their sequence or
characteristics. We determined, therefore, to confine our present observations to a general notice ot the history
of the silk-trade.

While various classic authors bear testimony to the fact that raw silk and silken garments were known
to the principal nations of antiquity, the almost fabulous prices recorded to have been paid for that material
prove also its extreme rarity. These scanty supplies were obtained from China and from India. We learn
from the interesting notices collected by Mr. Porter,* that “ silk was very little known in Europe before the
reign of Augustus, and that it long remained extremely costly.” In spite, however, of its great expense,
the patrician ladies frequently indulged in the use of garments woven entirely of silk ; the inferior classes,
both males and females, making use of robes in which a portion only of silk was interwoven with a cheaper
material. The luxurious habits of the Romans accompanied them to Byzantium, and the supply of their
Avants afforded a rich harvest to the Persians, who monopolised the trade with India and China. 1 he prices,
however, at which the Persian merchants delivered their goods to the inhabitants of Constantinople, were so
outrageous as to lead to every possible endeavour on the part of the Greek emperors to obtain the products
of the East through other sources. Justinian, after failing in several attempts to force a supply, at last
caused the almost total extinction of the trade. Singularly enough, however, at this moment relief came
from a quarter whence it w r as least expected. Two Persian monks, who had been employed as missionaries
in some of the Christian churches established in China, returning to Constantinople, brought to the Emperor
the result of their observations upon the Chinese method of obtaining the raw material. Urged by the promise
of a <rreat reAvard, and eluding the jealous observation of the natives, they succeeded in the acquisition of a
quantity of silk-worms’ eggs. In the year 552 they returned in safety to Constantinople, Avith their store of

* In Ins excellent “Treatise on the Origin, Progressive Improvements, and Present State of the Silk Manufacture.” — Lard.Ws
.Encyclopaedia, vol. xxii.

SILK BROCADES.

egg S preserved in a hollow staff. By carefully imitating the Chinese processes, these monks at last succeeded
in producing raw silk in abundance, and in procuring for Europe a good breed of silk-worms.

Thus introduced into Byzantium, the manufacture was immediately monopolised by the sovereign, who
took care to charge his faithful subjects most exorbitant prices for the commodities he supplied. The

propagation of the silk-worm was, however, soon extended to other districts; and for many centuries the
Greeks generally, through the commercial intervention of Venice, supplied the whole of the Western parts of
Europe with silk. Mr. Porter observes, that the estimation in which the manufacture was held continued so
hitrh that its products were considered worthy of being made regal gifts. Thus in the year 790 the Emperor
Charlemagne sent two silken vests to Offa, king of Mercia. The national monopoly which commenced in the
reign of Justinian, continued undisturbed for a period of not less than 600 years, until the reign of Roger I.,
king of Sicily. Among the precious spoils of his invasion of the Greek empire, this sovereign brought back
many Greek silk-weavers, to whom he granted life and sustenance on the condition only of their imparting
to his subjects the secrets of their art. Several writers, quoted by Muratori, bear testimony to the beauty
of the silks which were consequently produced; and the richly-decorated costumes, of which such interesting
types are presented by the figures in the ancient mosaics, no doubt derive much of their brilliancy from
the skill of the Sicilian weavers. By degrees, a knowledge of the processes of the silk manufacture spread
throughout Italy, and was carried into Spain, obtaining extreme popularity among the Moors.

From the commencement of the thirteenth century, the trade in silk generally appears to have been most
extensively carried on in Venice and Genoa, whilst the art of spinning was mainly conducted at Bologna, and
that of weaving at Florence. The merchants of Antwerp, who maintained the principal commercial relations
with the Italian cities, exchanged in large quantities the cloths of the west of Europe for the silks of the
East, and eventually contrived, in the beginning of the fifteenth century, to procure a knowledge of the
processes for the artisans of their own country.

From its establishment in Flanders, there is little doubt that the manufacture was soon introduced into
England, since, m 1455, a company of silk women was established m London. On the occasion of the capture
of Antweip by the Duke of Parma, in 1585, it is stated that a third part of the merchants and workmen
engaged in the silk trade tied to England, and settled there. These refugees laid the foundation of that
manufacture which, at the latter end of the reign of James I., had grown into a thriving condition, and was
incorporated in the year 1629, under the style and title of “the Master, Wardens, Assistants, and Commonalty
ot Silk Throwsters.” Passing by the old stories of Henry the Eighth’s silk hose, and Queen Elizabeth’s black
silk stockings, which would appear to have been of Spanish production, we may turn to the invention of the
stocking-frame by William Lee, a poor student of St. John’s College, Cambridge. So great a revolution did
this occasion, that the English silk stockings speedily attained an enviable notoriety throughout Europe.

The French silk-trade (which had been established by Louis XI. at Tours, in 1480, and at Lyons by
Francis I. in 1520) had, under the auspices of Henry IV., attained a state of prosperity destined to be sadly
interfered with by the unfortunate revocation of the Edict of Nantes, which, in the year 1685, banished a vast
number of the most intelligent and industrious of the French population. Out of about 70,000, who made their
way to England and Ireland, a large number had been engaged in the silk-trade. Settling at Spitalfields, they
introduced many improvements into the English manufacture. The silks called alamodes and lustrings were
introduced by them; as well as brocades, satins, black and coloured mantuas, black paduasoys. ducapes,
watered tabbies, and black velvets, all of which fabrics had previously been imported. A great' commercial
advantage was gained by this country in the introduction, by Sir Thomas Lombe, in 1719, of the Italian
processes of throwing silk ; that is, of reducing it from the original filament to the states known as tram and

7T'r r CeSSa, ’ y f ° r f ™ S reSpeCtiVely the Weft and the "arp of all silken fabrics. By this improvement
m English were enabled to compete successfully with those countries upon which they had so long depended

draw 1 ° eak i 1>ait ° f tll6U bUPPl5 0i S1 * k tVast The Production of figured patterns by means of the

was firti r ltS attendant tW - b °y’ Was completely superseded in the year 1823, when the Jacquard loom

fectories in which * might be —- - —
formidable rivals t <s - f m S a Lm P tf ’ were a11 happdy crowned with success; and whilst

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PLATE XXIII.

THE CRYSTAL FOUNTAIN.

BY 1. AND C. OSIER, OF BIRMINGHAM.

Those upon whose memories the first sight of the glorious Transept of the Great Exhibition has stamped
a clear and lasting image, cannot fail to remember that striking object which formed so conspicuous a feature

in the middle-ground of the picture then presented to their view.

It would be difficult to imagine a central ornament more appropriate for a Palace of Glass, than a Crystal
Fountain; and there is no doubt that as a striking novelty in the application of the material, and as a pleasing
and graceful object in itself, it must, in a pre-eminent degree, have excited the interest and admiration of the
foreign visitors, who responded to the invitation accorded to them on the occasion ot the first Exhibition of
All Nations. Never before had a piece of glass-work been executed, involving the treatment, in casting,
cutting, and polishing, of blocks of glass of a size so large, and of a purity so uniformly faultless.

The firm by whose exertions this superb object was produced, were already favourably known to the public
by the taste which has always characterised their ordinary trade-productions. Having been led some years ago to
execute a splendid candelabrum in glass, for the late Pacha of Egypt, the Messrs. Osier acquired, in the course
of its formation, such an amount of practical dexterity, as induced them to undertake with confidence the
preparation of a still more magnificent ornament, of a similar nature, twenty feet m height, expressly as a
contribution to the Birmingham Exhibition, held at Bingley House in 1849. This latter work was purchased

by the Nepaulese Ambassador.

Excited by the admiration universally elicited by these productions, the Messrs. Osier determined that
their chief contribution to the Exhibition of All Nations should far surpass their previous attempts. Mr. Follett
Osier has communicated to Mr. Hunt’s “Hand-Book to the Great Exhibition” an interesting account of the
difficulties which presented themselves in the course of executing the Crystal Fountain; and as we feel oui-
selves unable to describe them in language more graphic than that gentleman has employed, we take the
liberty of adopting his words:—“The experience gained in making the candelabra for Egypt has been of
considerable use to us in making the great Fountain; though the difficulties attendant on the latter work
were far beyond what we anticipated when we first entertained the idea of its construction. Indeed, for some
time it progressed so slowly, that we feared we should be obliged to abandon the undertaking. Fiist, the
moulding of such large pieces of glass is very troublesome and difficult, and the waste very consideiable,
annealing also is very hazardous. If the kiln in which this process takes place is at all too hot, the
is bent out of form by its own weight; and if too cool, fracture is certain to take place, either immediately,
or during the process of cutting-that is, grinding and polishing. This annealing, or cooling process, occupies
a space of from six to seven days; and as only a comparatively small portion of the whole can be made
at once, much time is consumed. Such parts as have stood the moulding and annealing, have next to he
submitted to grinding, and here much additional risk is incurred; for every part is richly cut all over. Upwards
of four tons of crystal-glass were used in the construction of the Fountain now in the transept of the Exhibition.
The principal dish is upwards of eight feet in diameter, and weighed, before cutting, nearly a ton. The shells
round the base weighed nearly fifty pounds each previous to cutting. The public can really form no conception
of the labour and troubles to be gone through in producing this work, though I think the glass trade must

THE CRYSTAL FOUNTAIN.

be pretty sensible of it. After all, there is not only the glass, but the construction and engineering difficulties,
if I may so call them, to be overcome. We have had the kind advice and assistance of Mr. Barry, who

has taken a great interest in the work, and he has aided us with his valuable advice. We look to this rich

and massive style of work as opening a new feature in the trade, a smaller sample of which (a pair of candelabra)
may be seen in our case in the gallery. These were executed by command of His Royal Highness Prince Albert,
and were presented by him to ITer Majesty on her birth-day in 1849, and are placed in the drawing-room
at Osborne. They are upwards of eight feet in height, and carry fifteen lights each.”

In reference to the peculiar brilliancy of Messrs. Osier’s glass, it must be remembered that the term white,
as applied to glass, is only comparative, since no glass is perfectly colourless; and to the practised eye of the
glass-maker there exist no two pieces of the same tint or shade. Mr. Apsley Pellatt, who has directed his
attention particularly to the influence of oxygen on the colour or tint of flint-glass, read an interesting paper
on the subject at the Society of Arts, in the autumn of 1849. He therein dwelt upon this influence in two distinct
particulars; first, in the action of oxygen upon the glass-mixture during its melting or founding, and whilst in a

state of fusion ; and, secondly, during its annealing, or gradually cooling. Mr. Pellatt describes the constituents

of flint-glass as “silica, lead, carbonate of potash, and nitrate of potash. The silica is found sufficiently pure, as
fine sand, which abounds in various districts ; that from Alum Bay, in the Isle of Wight, being most esteemed.

I he protoxide of lead (litharge), or the deutoxide (red lead), is the state in which the lead is used; and the potash
is the ordinary curl, or nitrate of potash of commerce. These, when mixed in certain proportions, and subjected
to a strong heat for sixty or seventy hours, produce flint-glass. The purer the metal the more transparent
the glass; but, although all the materials be chemically pure, a colourless glass is not the product. Owing
to some chemical change which takes place during the melting, the glass is tinted with green.” In a notice
of this subject in the “Journal of Design” (vol. ii. p. 182), it is observed, that this phenomenon is generally
stated to aiise from the presence of oxide of iron; but the result of Mr. A. Pcllatts experiments goes far to
demonstrate that the defect is in truth owing to the want of a necessary proportion of oxygen in the mixture.
To supply this want, and to counteract the consequent tendency to a green tint, the oxide of manganese, which
has the property of giving off its oxygen very slowly, is constantly introduced. Should, however, the manganese
be used in superabundance, a purple tint is induced, which requires a certain amount of carbon to neutralise
its action. The gi eater the heat to which the materials are to be exposed, the greater is the quantity of
manganese required. The broad result of Mr. Pellatt’s inquiries is a conviction that the changes in the colour
of glass are due to the presence or absence of a due amount of oxygen.

So fine are the proportions in which the various elements which constitute perfection in glass manufacture
require to be combined, and such grave defects do the slightest impurities entail, that it is not easy to realise

to the imagination the amount of thought, study, and attention which the Messrs. Osier must have devoted
to the production of this beautiful and extraordinary work.

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PLATE XXIV.

INDIAN KINCOB PATTERNS,

WOVEN AT AHMEDABAD AND BENARES.

The Great Exhibition displayed, probably, no more striking deviation from the ordinary relation in which
the method of manufacture stands to the finished article, than was evidenced by the 'extraordinary discrepancy

etWee ” the rUdeneSS ° f the Indian looms and the refined beauty and delicacy of the fabrics produced by them
A very few lines of description will serve to indicate at once the simplest series of operations by which textile

goods can be fabricated, and the customary practice of the Indian weaver. The workman first determines
the width and material of the stuff he is about to make, and selects as many skeins of yarn or twist, of uniform
length, as he wishes to have threads in the width of his fabric. He then prepares two bamboo rollers, and
a hue comb made of strips of split bamboo tied together. Attended by his wife, or some other assistant, he
then carries out to a field the materials he has prepared. The ends of the threads are first passed through
le interstices of the comb, and then secured to one of the bamboo rollers; this is done to every thread
unt t ie w hole senes, making up the width, are attached in a uniform line. The roller, thus prepared, is fixed to
the s iound, the skeins me then undone, and the threads are extended to their full length. The comb, beino-
drawn along to the end farthest from the first roller, prevents the threads from entangling, "and retains them at the
same distance apart at which they were secured to the first roller. The ends are then secured to the second
lollci , the pi active of the workman enabling him to give an exactly similar amount of tension to every thread.
The first roller is then wound round, and thus the warp for the fabric is prepared.

The weaver then takes himself and his apparatus, either to a shady spot under a tree, or to an open

shed if he should be fortunate enough to possess one. He there fixes one of his rollers in clefts cut in posts

a few inches high, and then partially unrolling the warp, he extends the threads horizontally, and secures the
second rollei in a similar manner to that in which he had already fixed the first. A hole being dug beneath
one of the rollers, the weaver places his feet in it, seating himself on the edge. He then suspends above his
, at a foot 01 two in fiont of him, two pieces of bamboo, each one having half as many strings depending
fioni it as tlieie aie thieads in the width of his warp. If we might imagine these threads to be distinguished
} odd and cun numbeis, it would be correct to say, that by means of loops in the dependent strings he
then attaches all the odd-numbered threads to one piece of bamboo (Anglicc, a heckle), and all the even to
another. Each of the cords which, passing over either a branch of the tree, or a beam of the shed, serves
to suspend a bamboo heckle, having a loop tied to it, through which is passed the great toe of the weaver’s
foot, enables him, by alternating his pressure upon the loops, to raise or depress each alternate thread of his
vaip. He then piepaies his shuttle, which is more like a long knitting-needle than an ordinary English
shuttle, winding on it a length of the thread which he determines to make use of for his weft or shute. °
Seating himself in front of his work, and pressing down one of the loops, so as to raise the odd-numbered
thieads above the even, he throws Ins shuttle from one side to the other, leaving a weft-thread behind:
this thread he presses up to the bamboo roller with his long shuttle (thus superseding the use of the

“batten”), and then raising his foot so as to release the tension of the first loop, and pressing on the

second, he depresses the odd-numbered warp - threads, and raises the even-numbered. The crossing of

INDIAN KINCQB PATTERNS.

these two, of course, confines the weft-thread first thrown. The weaver then jerks back the shuttle leaving
another weft-thread behind, to be pressed up and confined in the same manner as the first; and thus y
alternately pressing down the loops, and throwing the shuttle from side to side, the ordinal y opua ion o

weaving is carried on in India.

Pattern weaving, it must be evident, is produced by making a difference either in colour or texture, or
in both between the warp and the weft-threads, and causing one or other to predominate on the surface of
the fabric. This is effected by increasing the number of heckles, and attaching the warp-threads to them m
the succession necessary to vary the pattern, by allowing the shuttle at every throw to pass over and under
the number only previously arranged to produce the required variation of pattern. As the weaver, when
single-handed, can only work the heckles by the pressure of his feet, the range of patterns producible by
one” workman only must of course be limited. Any amount of elaboration may, however, be attained by
increasing the number of heckles, and employing an assistant (the drawboy of the old English draw-loom)
to elevate or depress them, in regular succession, between the throws of the shuttle.

When we reflect on the richness and beauty of patterns such as those we engrave, and generally on the
variety and perfection with which every fabric, from the common cottons of Bengal to the Kmcobs and
tissues of Benares, the muslin of Dacca and the shawls of Cashmere, are executed throughout the whole of the
Indian empire, we cannot fail to be impressed with admiration at the patience, ingenuity, and dexteiity, with
which the natives are enabled to produce such extraordinary results, with such wonderfully simple machinery.

The Benares cloth of gold has long been celebrated, and as large quantities are purchased by the wealthier
pilgrims who visit the holy city from every part of India, its reputation has spread over the whole of the
continent. Some of the richest and most beautiful of the Benares fabrics were exhibited by Baboo Deo

Nary an and Gopinauth Debersaad.

The largest and most important of the patterns given in Plate XXI\ . was produced at Alnnedabad, and
is a portion of a square brocade which was contributed to the Exhibition by Mr. Copland, ol London.

Up to the beginning of the eighteenth century, Ahmedabad was the centre of the prosperity which
reigned in the province of Guzzerat, in the district of Bombay, under the old Mohammedan sway. The
monuments, rich buildings, and commerce of the city, having been famous thiougliout the pio\ince of which
it w r as the capital. On falling into the hands of the Malirattas, who retained dominion o\ei it until the

be fr innin°' of the nineteenth century, it sunk into sad tribulation. ihe extortionate taxes and duties lewied

by the Mahratta chieftains almost entirely destroyed its manufacturing capabilities and its commeicial lelations.
In 1818, when Ahmedabad came into the possession of the East India Company, successful efforts were
made to foster its trade, and to develope its resources. Under the secure and just dominion of the Company,

the manufacturer and merchant have been enabled to reanimate and to take advantage of the tiaditions of

skill and beauty which had lingered in the old families, and there is little doubt that the chaiming pattern
we engrave is but a revival of one of the old Mohammedan designs of the palmy days of the city. „

We gather from the Official Illustrated Catalogue of the Exhibition a few' particulars concerning the
actual condition of the manufactures of Ahmedabad. It appears that the most important are three in number :
silk and gold brocade, ribbons, and paper. Of the former, we learn that the constituent materials are derived,—
the silk from China, Bassora, and Calcutta, the gold and silver thread from Ahmedabad itself, and the cochineal
from England. It is estimated that not less than 40,000 rupees’ worth of goods are annually consumed in the
city and its surrounding district, and at least 300,000 rupees’ worth are manufactured for the export trade.
These goods are consigned, in India, to Bombay, Baroda, Poona, Gwalior, Hydrabad, and Rajpootana; and
out of India, to Sindh, Cabool, Arabia, Persia, and China.

Of the ribbon trade, we learn that, the raw silk is procured from China—the dye - stuffs (with the

exception of indigo, the produce of Kandeisli) through Bombay; that no less than 20,000 rupees’ w orth are

consumed in the city and its district; and that 100,000 rupees’ worth are annually forwarded to Baroda,
Bombay, Rajpootana, Gw'alior, and all parts of Guzzerat.

Of the paper trade, it. appears that 20,000 rupees’ w orth are annually consigned to Bombay, and 15,000

to Baroda. The paper is made from hemp “ taut,” by' means of 250 mills or pounding machines, worked by r

the feet of the inhabitants, of whom no less than 2000 are employed daily in the manufacture.

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PLATE XXV.

VICTORY,

IN MARGIE, BY RAUCH OF BERLIN.

Dr. Franz Kugler, one of the most learned and original of modern critics of the Fine Arts, in sketching
their future prospects,* has characterised the three influences which contend for supremacy in modern sculpture,
as the Antique, the Natural, and the Romantic. The artist who would steer successfully between these apparently
conflicting currents can only do so by availing himself in turn of the influence of each; and thus it

is that those sculptors of the present day who, like Gibson and Rauch, read nature through the antique, not
disdaining occasionally to take advantage of the resources of romantic composition, to heighten the human
interest of their designs excite our liveliest sympathies, attain the greatest success, and achieve the noblest

works. Thus it is that the last-mentioned artist, a friend and favourite pupil of Thorwaldson, has justly
acquired a world-wide reputation in carrying on that emancipation from classical restraint which his great
master commenced. By the introduction of historical portraiture, the individualities of life and romantic
incident, into severe and monumental works, Rauch has testified how successfully productions of the highest
class of art may be made available to record graphically to future generations the events of history, and the
personal peculiarities and external forms of genius.

Christian Raucii was born on the 2d of January, 1777, at Arolsen, in the principality of Waldeck,
and received his first lessons in art from the sculptor attached to that court. At twenty years of age he
arrived at Berlin, where his talents soon procured him powerful and kindly patronage. In 1804 he was
enabled to travel, and having first visited France, he betook himself to Rome, where for several years he
laboured assiduously in the studio of Canova, and in that of Thorwaldson. The reputation which some of his
works had acquired in Prussia, even at his then early age, led to his recall to Berlin, in 1808, in order that
he might receive a commission for the monument of Queen Louise, then recently deceased. M. Fortoul
remarks that, on his return to Italy, with the intention of there executing the principal figure for this tomb,

“he found everything changed. In his first residence he had recognised the reproduction of ancient art, in

the most exact and refined types. On passing the Alps for a second visit, he encountered Cornelius and
Overbeck, who had already undertaken the restoration of the severest forms of Christian art. Notwithstanding
his early impressions, he readily received those ideas which paved the way for a new phase of art.”f

Without losing that exquisite appreciation of abstract beauty with which his studies under Canova had

fortified his powers, Rauch succeeded in animating his productions with much of that enthusiasm which
distinguished the theories and works of his above-named great contemporaries. M. Fortoul adverts with
considerable judgment and discrimination to the evidence afforded by the various works of Rauch of his
alternate yielding to these antagonistic influences. He remarks that the figure of Queen Louise, upon her
monument at Charlottenberg, is a fine portrait, composed, modelled, and attired after the antique, but in which,

at the same time, a true and feminine emotion pierces through the cold conventionalities of art.

* 4< Handbuch der Kunstgeschichte,” ‘2d ed. chap. 22.

t These particulars of our artist’s career are derived from the works of the Count Raczynski,
Fortoul,” the “ Kunstblatl,” the “Art-Journal,” and other sources.

“ De FArt en Allemagnc, par Ilippolyte

VICTORY.

The six winged Victories, which decorate the interior of the Walhalla, although designed with more freedom,
and executed with greater vigour, preserve an essential resemblance to the artist’s earliest mythological compo¬
sitions. In two beautiful figures of the Danaides (a commission from the Emperor of Russia), there breathes
a pure and genuine grief, expressed in a manner somewhat more human than that which the laws of classic art
would recognise as within the restricted province of the sculptor.

One of the most remarkable qualities of Rauch is the power he possesses of infusing into his portrait-
statues that ideality of expression with which he desires to impress the beholder, without sacrificing the
individuality of personal appearance. Thus, in his celebrated statues of Scharnhorst, Bulow, and Bluclier, he
has indicated the leading characteristics of the military genius of those great commanders; giving to the first
that calmness which is inspired by utter insensibility to danger; to the second, the energy which seeks the
combat; and to the third, an aspect of desperate resolution, which feels, courts, and triumphs over danger.

These figures, of which the two former are in Carrara marble, and the third in bronze, are placed opposite to

the guard-house at Berlin, designed by Schinkel. Their pedestals are decorated with a series of bas-reliefs,

which successfully illustrate the lessons derived by Rauch from the great master of that mode of expression,—

Thorwaldson. Around the pedestal of the statue of BRicher the artist has embodied, in forms and with
episodes of great beauty, the deliverance of the nations of Germany from the miseries of war.

M. Fortoul remarks that the romantic spirit displayed in these bas-reliefs becomes still more evident in
the latter works of Rauch. Ilis statue of Albert Durer, erected in 1810 on the principal Place at Nuremberg,
is a noble rendering in bronze of those commanding features, and that sad, though intellectual expression,
which the artist has preserved to us in those curious portraits of himself, which are still to be met with in
some of the galleries of his native city. In the fine group, also in bronze, which was presented by the
Count Raczynski to the cathedral of Posen, the sculptor has represented the two first Christian kings of
Poland, Miceslas and Boleslas ; and in the general arrangement of the subject and the treatment of the
accessories, has worked rather in the style of the great Bavarian sculptor, Schwanthaler, than in that which
we may regard as peculiarly his own.

The ci owning work of Rauch s life is unquestionably the grand equestrian statue in which military Prussia
has commemorated her great military hero, Frederick the Great. On this production the artist lavished
e^eiy resouice of his ait, elaborating its details with all the enthusiasm of a student. Not content with his
own capabilities of imitating nature, he undertook a voyage to St. Petersburg, in order to take lessons from
a Geiman aitist, who had devoted himself exclusively to the analysis of the finest forms of the horse.
Returning to Beilin, he entered deeply into the study of those conventions which Phidias and other sculptors
of antiquity have sanctioned by their example, and, finally, composed a noble animal, worthy to bear the great
heio of his fatherland. At the angles of the pedestal Rauch lias represented four of the generals of the
army on horseback, and between them are grouped other distinguished soldiers of the period. In these
figuies the artist has successfully resolved the much-debated question of the applicability of modern costume
to the purposes of commemorative sculpture, redeeming, by the vigour of the action, and the intelligence of
the heads, even the uncompromising rigidity of pig-tails and gaiters. It must have been a proud day for
Rauch when, in the present year, this, his greatest work, was inaugurated, and when he received from the

hands of his sovereign those honorary distinctions to which his merit as an artist had so eminently
entitled him.

It is fortunate for Germany that Kiss, the favourite pupil of Raucli, appears to inherit much of the genius

of his master—than whom few understand more profoundly the true conditions of the sculptor’s art. It was

our happy privilege, on being present at the first interview which, for very many years, had taken place

between Rauch and Gibson, to hear those two great sculptors discuss the leading principles of their art, and
compare their relative experiences.

It has been frequently remarked that that peculiar dignity and military grace which distinguishes the male
statues of Ranch, appears to be an impersonation of the physical characteristics of the artist himself; whose
noble figure and manly bearing, notwithstanding his advanced years, are truly remarkable.

The Statue which we have engraved, and which was purchased by Her Majesty the Queen, is a replica of

the original figure executed for the King of Prussia, and which now forms one of the most beautiful ornaments
of the Royal Palace of Berlin.

VICTORY.

The six winded Victories, which decorate the interior of the Walhalla, although designed with more freedom,
and executed with Greater vigour, preserve an essential resemblance to the artist’s earliest mythological compo-
sitions. In two beautiful figures of the Danaides (a commission from the Emperor of Russia), there breathes
a pure and genuine grief, expressed in a manner somewhat more human than that which the laws of classic art
would recognise as within the restricted province of the sculptor.

One of the most remarkable qualities of Rauch is the power he possesses of infusing into his portrait-
statues that ideality of expression with which he desires to impress the beholder, without sacrificing the
individuality of personal appearance. Thus, in his celebrated statues of Scharnhorst, Bulow, and Bliicher, he
has indicated the leading characteristics of the military genius of those great commanders; giving to the first
that calmness which is inspired by utter insensibility to danger; to the second, the energy which seeks the
combat; and to the third, an aspect of desperate resolution, which feels, courts, and triumphs over danger.

These figures, of which the two former are in Carrara marble, and the third in bronze, are placed opposite to

the guard-house at Berlin, designed by Scliinkel. Their pedestals are decorated with a series of bas-reliefs,

which successfully illustrate the lessons derived by Rauch from the great master of that mode of expression,—

Thonvaldson. Around the pedestal of the statue of Bliicher the artist has embodied, in forms and with
episodes ot great beauty, the deliverance of the nations of Germany from the miseries of war.

M. Fortoul remarks that the romantic spirit displayed in these bas-reliefs becomes still more evident in
the latter works of Rauch. Ilis statue ot Albert Durer, erected in 1840 on the principal Place at Nuremberg,
e e o in bronze ot those commanding features, and that sad, though intellectual expression,
which the artist has preserved to us in those curious portraits of himself, which are still to be met with in
some of the galleries of his native city. In the fine group, also in bronze, which, was presented by the
Count Raczynski to the cathedral of Posen, the sculptor has represented the two first Christian kings of
Poland, Miceslas and Boleslas ; and in the general arrangement of the subject and the treatment of the
accessoi ies, has worked rather in the style ot the great Bavarian sculptor, Schwanthaler, than in that which
we may regard as peculiarly his own.

The ciovuiing woik of Rauch s life is unquestionably the grand equestrian statue in which military Prussia

has commemorated her great military hero, Frederick the Great. On this production the artist lavished

every resource of his art, elaborating its details with all the enthusiasm of a student. Not content with his

own capabilities of imitating nature, lie undertook a voyage to St. Petersburg, in order to take lessons from

a German artist, who had devoted himself exclusively to the analysis of the finest forms of the horse.

Returning to Berlin, he entered deeply into the study of those conventions which Phidias and other sculptors

of antiquit} haie sanctioned b) their example, and, finally, composed a noble animal, worthy to bear the great

heio of his fatheiland. At the angles of the pedestal Rauch has represented four of the generals of the

army on horseback, and between them are grouped other distinguished soldiers of the period. In these

figmes the artist has successfully resolved the much-debated question of the applicability of modern costume

to the purposes of commemorative sculpture, redeeming, by the vigour of the action, and the intelligence of

the heads, even the uncompromising rigidity of pig-tails and gaiters. It must have been a proud day for

Rauch when, in the present year, this, his greatest work, was inaugurated, and when he received from the

hands of his sovereign those honorary distinctions to which his merit as an artist had so eminently
entitled him.

It is fortunate for Germany that Kiss, the favourite pupil of Rauch, appears to inherit much of the genius

of his master—than whom few understand more profoundly the true conditions of the sculptor’s art. It was

our happy privilege, on being present at the first interview which, for very many years, had taken place

between Rauch and Gibson, to hear those two great sculptors discuss the leading principles of their art, and
compare their relative experiences.

It has been frequently remarked that that peculiar dignity and military grace which distinguishes the male
statues of Rauch, appears to be an impersonation of the physical characteristics of the artist himself; whose
noble figure and manly bearing, notwithstanding his advanced years, are truly remarkable.

The statue which we have engraved, and which was purchased by Her Majesty the Queen, is a replica of

the original figure executed for the King of Prussia, and which now forms one of the most beautiful
of the Royal Palace of Berlin.

n aments

2 *

PLATE XXVI.

PRINTED MUSLINS,

BY DEP0D1LLY OF PARIS.

I' R0M time immemorial, the palm of excellence in all matters of fashion has been awarded to France. This
long-established reputation has been well sustained by the elegant design and harmonious colouring of the
patterns of printed muslins contributed to the Great Exhibition by Messrs. Depouilly; the history and
progress of whose establishment afford a remarkable illustration of the difference between the steps which
lead to commercial eminence in England and on the other side of the Channel.

Messrs. Depouilly were originally silk-manufacturers at Lyons; and the Jury of the Parisian Exposition
of 1819 awarded to them in that capacity a gold medal for the excellence of their garment-stuffs, especially
commending the novelty and taste of their productions. The quality of taste has always been regarded as a
valuable item in the stock of commercial capital in France; but at the period referred to, we must acknowledge
that its importance was but lightly estimated in this country.

In 1823, the medal previously gained by Messrs. Depouilly was confirmed to them, with flattering remarks
by the Jury of the Exposition of that year; and the productions of their establishment acquired so much
popularity with the Parisian public, that they were induced shortly afterwards to remove to Puteaux, in the
department of the Seine, where they gave every variety of finish to woollen, cotton, and silk fabrics. They
again received rappels of gold medals at the Expositions of 1830 and 1844.

The peculiar talent of Messrs. Depouilly for seizing and embodying the reigning taste, well fits them to
excel in the immediate atmosphere of Paris. The productions which constantly emanate from their establish¬
ment, “catch as she flies the Cynthia of the minute/’ and faithfully reflect the fitful movements of French
caprice. The term Indienne , used by the French to express the most popular form in which cotton-printing
is allied to weaving, demonstrates with sufficient clearness the source from which has been derived the art of
applying dyes in patterns to goods of a uniform colour.

For many years previous to 1785, printing on cotton had been successfully carried on in England, France,
and Germany, but it was not until that year that the principle of copperplate printing, viz. obtaining the
impression from indented lines instead of from a surface in relief, was adopted.

In 1789 the celebrated Oberkampf was encouraged by Napoleon to establish a printing-factory at Jouy;
and that circumstance led to the congregation in Alsatia of a considerable number of manufacturers, who
pursued a growing and lucrative business with great energy and talent. The name of Daniel Koechlin, of
Mulhausen, may be regarded as that of the patriarch of French calico-printing. To his skill we are indebted
for many scientific applications of discharges, resists, mordants, Sec., upon the details of which it is impossible
to enter in the present notice. To trace the progress of cotton-printing, as recorded in the annals of successive
Expositions of Paris, is, in fact, to find a continued iteration of the name of this great man, who has been
worthily called the James Thompson of France. Around Koechlin were grouped many men whose names are
classical in the records of French industry, — Gros Davillier, Roman and Co.; Dollfus Meig and Co.; D.
Schlumberger and Co.; Hartmann and Co.; and Zuber and Co., may be especially noted as having
distinguished themselves in the incipient stages ol the manufactuie.

PRINTED MUSLINS.

The business of calico-printing was early carried on at Rouen, to a great extent—principally through
the exertions of M. Henri Barbet—and an extraordinary impulse was given to it in 1835 by the inventions
of M. Perrot; but the productions of that locality have never equalled those of Alsatia, or the department of
the Seine. The machine invented by M. Perrot—a species of automaton cylinder printing apparatus speedily
obtained great success, and led to a vastly increased production, not only at Rouen, but in the other districts

where the trade was carried on.

It has been justly observed by M. Blanqui, that “Alsatia is a model manufacturing country; machine
manufacturers, spinning, weaving, printing establishments, all are united there. It is the land of mechanists,
designers, and chemists. Nowhere are dye-stuffs more skilfully used than in that district: nowhere are
dyers’ weeds, madder, cochineal, orchil, tScc., applied with more brilliancy or fastness. It is to Alsatia that
Europe is indebted for its partiality to those light and graceful fabrics which nowadays decorate, at such
small cost, all dwellings, and which so economically clothe all women.” It has been equally well remarked
by Mr. Ward A that while, in England, the science of printing has become one of the most beautiful and
refined applications of chemical art, and while the attention of manufacturers appears to have been directed
almost exclusively to durability and cheapness, the study of design has been to a great extent eclipsed by
sterner commercial requirements. “France,” he remarks, “has studiously cultivated the art of design, and
advanced its professors to the rank of gentlemen. In England, on the contrary, with some exceptions, it has
been degraded to a mechanical employment, and remunerated at weekly wages. France has, in consequence, a
species of industry to which we have no claim—the production of designs for exportation. The demand for
the latter is considerable, and has been rapidly increasing. Small as is the print-trade of France compared with
that of England, there are in Paris ten times the number of pattern-drawers that are to be found in London,
or in Manchester. Some of these establishments are considerable, and employ from ten to fifteen designers
each: and a talented designer receives from 8,000 to 10,000 francs a-year—more than twice the sum paid to
similar talent in this country.”

Great efforts are, however, being daily made to establish better educational principles in matters of art-
manufacture, and to promote that recognition and expression of beautiful forms which can alone lead to
excellence of production. Manchester and Paisley, by the beautiful fabrics they contributed to the Great
Exhibition, have, however, given us convincing grounds for belief that the day is not far distant when
English muslins may be found as original and graceful in form, and as tender in colour, as those of Messrs.
Depouilly.

* “ The World in its Workshops,” p. 243.

M 0 T r. BY .WA TT DIREX

V 4 H 0 N r v

VASE N ‘ _V E

B • •< UNT &■. R 0 ' K

c_ L- L, U r

j '4 D O ?■. .

and f>liBU$H£D :r, ar L * r 4 30N , thccrapher

^ 11 * h£ 00 w £f.

PLATE XXVII.

VASE IN SILVER,

BY HUNT AND EOSKELL OF LONDON.

It is gratifyintr to be enabled to recognise the fact, that the productions of the successors to the late
well-known firm of Storr and Mortimer equal at least, if indeed they do not far surpass, the most remarkable
objects, the perfection of which made the reputation of the original house. In point ot intrinsic anc monetary
J„, ; bB i„ y mad. b, Messrs. Hunt and Roskell mas probahl, unique in ,hc whoie o, the Ore. Erdn-
bition, since it was one which required to be valued by hundreds of thousands of pounds, rather than by

thousands,^idy^ ^ ^ ^ elaboration 0 f which such almost countless sums had been la¬

vished, there was none which, as a pure specimen of the highest art of sculpture in the precious metal*, co
excel the beautiful Vase given in the Plate we are now describing. Those connoisseurs who are deeply learner
in the manipulative processes of metal-working cannot but appreciate with pleasure the exquisite character
the 1Z1 and the perfection with which Benvenuto’s great stumbling-block, the saMatura, has been
overcome and concealed. To the practical student and art-workman this Vase alone would afford an adnnra ffe
text for a lesson, since it perfectly illustrates the appropriate introduction and treatment ot every variety

relief and modelling, and the most refined handling of the graver and chasing-tool

To the artist and designer, the hints it should afford are scarcely less important, since it
easilv the latest boldneJ and movement in design may be allied to the purest and most severe ounenng
forms- and'how much life and animation the contrast imparts to those portions to which the eye of the bcho cc

IZld be fil conducted. Its composition may also be especially commended as evincing tlm pui. asfo aiM

vigorous imagination allied to a just recognition of the Utilitarian purpose of t ie object, H- the^ t
conditions of a vase are never lost sight of-thc handles arc real handles, by which the vess.1 c n l e iff 1-
the lid is a real lid, which can be taken off-and that contour which, by association of ideas, we o
a similar object, is rigidly preserved. Yet, with all this attention to Utilitarian requirement ^

has been made subservient to the powerful embodiment of one of the most grand and awful 1^-
ancient tradition. The Vase and its lofty theme are thus described m a Catalogue o mil c

u, A ■ - .. . r »- : rr,r‘ir:r “ i:

Titans bv Jupiter, who made war upon them for having imprisoned his tatliei batun B

Z mid Zra seeking to revenge the death of the Titans, made war on the Gods, heaped rock on rock,

t , i mitain ‘Ossa on Pelion piled,’ in order to reach heaven. Jupiter routed the foe, who were
mountain on summit of the cover is Jupiter, who, with stern and angry looks,

crushed unde o s „d m ^ ^ ^ ^ Titans below . Bordering the cover is the Zodiac

grasps thumb 1 1 ms, ^ of the Vase , on each side, are groups of giants-some climbing upwards,

circle, m low >e - ^ mighty j 0 ve. Supported by the handles of the Vase, two bold,

some crushed by the - mcnac ing the father of gods and men. On the foot are

Hta, distorted figures, representing Vice „»d Presumption tenth,ng the agon.es death.

VASE IN SILVER.

“On the neck of the Vase, in low relief, are two figures, representing Time and Late; the former
nth his scythe, the latter grasping serpents. Among the representations in low relief may he recognised
Satyrs and Bacchanals in bowers of vine; Neptune in his chariot, drawn by sea-horses, hurling thunder-bolts
at the giants, who are casting rocks at him; flies and grotesque insects writhing in a spider s web, alluding
to the fate of Araelme. Below one of the handles is Pan; beneath the other a skeleton. Crocodiles, winged
monsters, fiery dragons, and other fabulous monsters of sea and land, wage war with one another.

It is to be regretted that Messrs. Hunt and Roskell have not appended to their description some notice
of the Artist 1)} whom this most noble piece of work has been designed and executed—more particularly since,
if we are rightly informed, it is the production of one whose name among cunning artificers has passed into a
proverb. To say that a man can chase metal-work like Vechte, would be to place him at once upon a footing
with Cellini, Caradosso, Van Vianen, Wagner, Mertins, Ballin, Briot, and Dassier—so many of the finest qualities
of these masters does Vechte unite in his own person. Who that examined the extraordinary, unfinished shield
in silver and iron, truly “a specimen of art and embossing,” dedicated to Shakspeare, Milton, and Newton,
could fail to recognise in that the mind and handicraft of the most accomplished artist ?

It is infinitely to the credit of Messrs. Hunt and Roskell, that they are devoting their capital and
energies to securing the execution of what must always be regarded as one of the most exquisite specimens of
the silversmith’s art ever produced; and it is to be equally regretted, that neither the Vase we engrave, the
Shield we mention, nor some other grand work of a similar high class, were included in the liberal purchases
made by the princely Goldsmiths’ Company.

As we shall have occasion, in the course of this work, to notice other objects, over the production of
which the genius of Vechte has presided, we shall hope to be enabled to afford some information respecting
the life and principal works of this celebrated artist.

'V ..

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w D I G B v ^ v A T T D|*EX T

CASHMERE scarf en

* S'

BEDFORD LI

PLATE XXVIII.

SCARF-END FROM CASHMERE.

As a specimen of the harmonious blending of deep-toned colours, and an agreeable departure from the
somewhat too inevitable “ tail’’-pattern of three-fourths of the shawl fabrics woven at the present day, we feel
confident that the merits of the object engraved will be immediately recognised. However beautiful in execution
many of the drawings for shawls contributed to the Great Exhibition, by French and English artists, may have
been, it was impossible not to have been struck in them by the absence of many of the excellencies which
characterise the majority of the Oriental productions.

The valley of Cashmere — the ancient Caspira — has so long been celebrated for its shawls, that the
manufacture of that beautiful article of costume, so highly esteemed by Oriental nations, is by some writers
believed to have originated there. Possessing unequalled fineness, delicacy, and warmth, the shawls of Cashmere
have always maintained the highest estimation in every market of the world; and the choicest examples of
them have realised, as is well known, almost incredible prices. Although numerous authors have dwelt in
detail upon the subject of the manufactures of Cashmere, considerable difficulty would be experienced by any one
who, by going through their writings, should attempt the task of realising for himself a clear idea upon the
subject. This difficulty would mainly arise from the fact that he would find his authorities somewhat at variance.
The occasional misapplication of a technical term, and the frequently evident want of a right apprehension of
the mechanism of the loom, serve to render the meaning of many passages so questionable or obscure as to
tend practically to confusion, rather than to explanation. It is, therefore, with some mistrust that we proceed
to offer the following remarks, which have for the most part been condensed from the authorities given beneath.*

It must be manifest that every successful production of art-manufacture must exhibit a satisfactory
conjunction of three ingredients, — good and fine raw material,—tasteful design,—and skilful and finished
execution. In noticing Cashmere shawl fabrication, one of the highest orders of art-manufacture, we shall,
therefore, dwell upon each of those ingredients in succession, taking up the two former in the present article,
and the latter on a subsequent occasion.

The wool of which the shawls of Cashmere are composed is the cotton-like down, or inner hair, of a
species of goat which abounds in the vast plains of Thibet—a cold, dry table-land to the east of Cashmere.
The wool which is manufactured in Cashmere into woven fabrics is of two kinds: pashm shal , or shawl-wool,
the produce of the tame goat; and asali tus, or the fleece of the wild goat, the wild sheep, and other
animals, including the yak , a species of ox, and even the dog of Thibet. Attempts have been often made to
rival the shawls of Cashmere, but even when the genuine shawl-wool has been employed, these efforts
have not succeeded. The most remarkable endeavours of this nature have been made in various districts
of the continent of India, but with what success the following passage from Mr. IVTCulloch will testify: —
“ It must be admitted,” says he, “ that shawls have nowhere been made that can come, as respects quality,
into successful competition with those of Cashmere. The manufacture has been established at Delhi and Lahore
for some years; but notwithstanding it is carried on by native Caslimerians, and although the material employed

* M'Culloch’s “Dictionary of Commerce,” article Shawls; Hamilton’s “Description of Hindostan; Vigne’s “Travels in Kashmir;”
Moorcroft’s “ Travels in the Himalayan Provinces of Hindostan and the PunjabThornton’s “ Gazetteer of the Countries adjacent to India
Karl Freiherr Von Hugel, “ Kaschmir und das Reich der Siek.” 8°. Stuttgardt, 1840; “ Dictionnaire Universel du Commerce,” &c. Paris, 1851.
(Articles “ Cliales et Laines”); “ The Official Illustrated Catalogue, &c. &cc.

£ i

SCARF-END FROM CASHMERE.

be quite the same, the fabrics are said to want the fineness of those made m Cashmere and t have a degene¬
rated and coarse appearance. This superiority has been ascribed to some peculiar quahty of the water m the
valley of Cashmere; but it is most probably owing to a variety of circumstances, winch, though each may appear

of little importance, collectively give a character to the manufacture.”

Napoleon imported goats from the East into France; but these were not, as has been stated, of the Thibet

breed; being brought from Talish, on the western bank of the Caspian Sea. T he Cashmenan goat lias been
bred in England by His Royal Highness Prince Albert (who exhibited specimens of the wool, and of fabrics
made from It), and by Mr. Power, of Weald Hall, Essex ; but there is reason to believe the real Thibet goat
would in this climate yield but a comparatively small quantity of that peculiar down, or shawl-wool, which
constitutes its natural provision against the intensely cold and piercing ninds of its native ie = ion.

From the plains of Thibet the wool is conveyed to Rodokh (or Rudak), on the backs of sheep of a
peculiarly large breed. Rodokh is the principal rendezvous of the wool-merchants, who convey the material
from thence to Leli (or Le), the chief town of the province of Ladakh, where it is purchased by the merchants
of Cashmere, and carried to the seat of the manufacture on the backs of men and horses. The value of the
mol annually imported for shawls alone, is stated by Hiigel at 34,000/. One goat produces two pounds of
mol annually; and besides the distinctions of quality already mentioned, the material is sorted, accouling to the
colour of the animal producing it, into white, and dark, or ash-coloured; the formei foi plain, and the lattei
for dyed fabrics. One-third of the whole is of the latter description, and whilst the white wool was worth at
the time of Vigne’s visit to Cashmere about 4s. a pound, the dark wool was only hall that price.

The wool is first separated from the short hairs of the animal,—a process which greatly reduces its quantity.
Vigne states that “ one-fourth only of the quantity bought is fit for weaving.” It is then cleaned by washing;
in which operation rice-flour is used as an abstergent, instead of soap. The wool is then spun by the hands
of women, whose toilsome occupation only enables them to earn a sum equal to 2s. 6cl. a month. r lhe yarn
is next dyed ; and in this part of the manufacture, which is preserved hereditarily in particular families, great
ability is displayed. About forty different tints are generally used (although the dyers offer to supply no less

than sixty-four); some of these are obtained by extracting the colours of European woollens. Thus, the

ordinary baize of England supplies some of their finest greens, and also a light blue. The fine pale yellow

colour of a new shawl is given after weaving, by exposing it to the fumes of sulphur. The yarn, when

dyed, is dipped in rice-water, to strengthen it, and render it fit to sustain the rapid motion of the shuttle.
The shawls are always woven in pairs, and the thread for a large pair weighs fifteen or twenty pounds.
Hamilton states that when a merchant enters upon this trade, he engages several shops or looms in one
spot, so as to be under his own inspection ; sometimes he adopts the plan of giving out the thread to work¬
people, who carry on the manufacture at their own homes.

We gather from the report of the Sub-Committee appointed to investigate the subject of the varieties of
Cashmere shawls, proper to be exhibited, some interesting particulars in relation to the ordinary designs for
the finest kinds. It appears that they are regularly classified and priced ; and that the DosJiallas, or long
shawls, which are invariably manufactured and sold in pairs, are divided into regular classes, such as the
Ivhale Mitton, or plain-field shawls; the Poor Mitton, or full-flowered fields; and the Chaud Dar, &c.,
which are more irregular, and consist either of a moon or circle in the centre, four half-moons, green sprigs on
a plain ground, a group of flowers at the corner, or any combination of these. The principal colours are white,
black, crimson, scarlet, purple, blue, green, or yellow. Fine long shawls, with plain fields of handsome patterns,
ai e pi ocuiable at about 1-00 rupees per pair, and full-flowered at about 1500 rupees. It appears from Moorcroft’s
account, that the design is drawn in black and white only by a man called a u Nakash,” or pattern-drawer,
and is by him brought to the overseer of the works, who carefully studies and determines the various colours
of euq poition of it. Beginning at the foot of the pattern, he then calls out the colour and the number of
tineads to which it is to extend, that by which it is to be followed, and so on in succession, until the whole
pattern lia^ been described. From his dictation the particulars are written down in a kind of short-hand,
and a copy of the document is given to the weavers.

Thus it is that piepaiation is made for the actual operations of manufacture, a portion of the subjects
upon which we trust to be shortly enabled to enter.

A '/INTER, TEL } ~ lIT'-g

V .

M. [} I C B X A/y ATT. D’RLXT

C’UP D AND PANTHER, BY' RIET 5 CHE-L G v ORESD EN

LON'. N " L-' -- - it' N Cj

.fail - hf i) ;ANy & i a.

'52, Es' v ‘ Hay a SON, l T r.o:.RAP-IERS TO tit

CJ ue.cn.

PLATE XXIX.

CUPID AND PANTHER,

A BAS-RELIEF IN MAlillLE BY RIETSCHEL OF DRESDEN.

The illustration of the old motto, “Amor vineit omnia,’’ was a favourite subject among the artists of
antiquity; and many a sculptured gem and faded wall-painting still hear testimony to the power of those
emotions which made the traditional “ King Cophetua wed the beggar-maid.” As it’ however, to prove
that every “yea” must have its “nay,” Rietschel, in the design we now engrave, has shown to what
miserable straits the little God may be supposed to be occasionally reduced.

Pretty and trifling as may seem the fancy which is superficially expressed in this bas-relief, we cannot
doubt, — knowing the spirituality of the artist’s nature, and his attachment to Ludwig Tieck and Moritz
Retsch,—that it was his intention to enforce a more pregnant moral.

In the poor unfortunate Cupid, who has allowed himself to be seduced to mount the beast he cannot
manage, we may read a bitter satire on the miserable fate of those who excite passions which they cannot
control, and attempt to conduct undertakings for which their nature incapacitates them; or, perhaps, we
may fancy that the artist merely essayed to depict the torments of the lover, when borne away by imperious
passion, and completely abandoned to the fierce and wild career on which the fever of his blood has urged him.

Irrespective, however, of its merit as a work of illustration, it is impossible to refrain from according to
this production the highest possible praise for the freedom and excellence with which the composition has
been wrought out. The terror and childish prostration of the Cupid, the lunging movement of the Panther,
the texture of the flesh contrasted with, the shaggy coat of the animal, and the free and vigorous spirit of the
general execution, all bear testimony to the artistic skill displayed by this great master.

It is truly fortunate for Rietschel’s English reputation, that the three works which he contributed to the
Great Exhibition should differ so widely in character. In the beautiful subject of the “ Christ-Engel ” (Plate
Y.), we have ample evidence of his power of expressing seraphic grace and the beauty of repose. In his
” Pieta,” a far more severe style of composition and handling is adopted; and as an embodiment of that most
difficult theme,—expressing the awful agony of a scene too painful to dwell upon with feelings other than
of deep emotion,—it may be regarded as conveying more religious sentiment than any other modern repre¬
sentation of the same subject. In the “ Cupid and Panther,” the vivacity of imagination, and the ornamental
and pleasing treatment of the subject, prove that Rietschel’s sympathies with the lively and elegant department
of his art are as strong as with its most serious forms.

In the notice appended to Plate V. we briefly enumerated the leading works in which the genius of
this artist has been developed. Those only, however, who, besides those productions, have had an opportunity
of inspecting his beautiful portrait-busts, his minor works in single figures and bas-reliefs, and the compositions
which exist only in his drawings and models for every variety of work, can fully appreciate the extent and
diversity of his talents.

It is gratifying to be enabled to state that RietsclieTs two charming bas-reliefs have been retained in

CUPIl) AND PANTHER.

this country; the “ Christ-Engel ” having been purchased by Mr. I. K. Brunei, and the “ Cupid and Panther ”
by Lord Charles Townsend.

Although the number and importance of the works produced by our artist would warrant the supposition
th a t he had devoted to the cultivation of his art more years than ordinarily fall to mortal lot, he is in fact
still young. This circumstance renders it the more sad that the state of his health is such as to fill his
friends with the liveliest apprehensions, and he has consequently been strongly urged to seek its restoration
by a residence in Italy. Should it be decreed that his days are no longer to be spent in the practice of
that elevated art of which he is already so great an ornament, there will he a mournful interest in the fact

that his latest productions were contributed to the Great Exhibition.

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PLATE XXX.

BLACK LACE FLOUNCE,

BY GREASLEY AND HOPCROFT, OF NOTTINGHAM.

Among the numerous exquisite specimens of design, as applied to lace fabrics, which were collected in the
Great Exhibition, there was scarcely one to be found in which simplicity and an appropriate treatment of form
were so happily combined as in that we now engrave. Lace, as a material, is obviously best displayed when
the openness of the ground permits the surface over which it is worn to be distinctly seen through the
meshes, so as to assist in relieving or “throwing up” the flowers or ornaments worked in the net. Too
frequently in designs, both for English and foreign production, this principle of contrast between the
ground and the pattern, is overlooked. Scroll-work, shells, and every description of enrichment, are heaped
together so as to completely cover the original transparent field; rendering the work unnecessarily full and
tourmentc'y and converting what should be the lightest and most ethereal of textile fabrics into an apparently
heavy and cumbrous substance, which serves only to hide, instead of to decorate, the surface it covers.

Another defect in design which occasionally renders valueless some of those productions which, for
extraordinary minuteness and patient industry, might rival the celebrated labours of Arachne, consists in
the ambitious attempt to introduce direct imitation of objects unsuited to be reproduced by the technical
processes of manufacture. Thus we have too often been called upon to sympathise with abortive attempts at
portraiture, and at the uncomfortable delineation of landscapes by the contorted bobbins of the lace-maker,
and the ambitious needle of the embroideress.

From such defects Messrs. Greasley and Hopcroft’s flounce is entirely free; and it may be regarded as
offering a pleasing illustration of the kind and amount of conventionality in ornament appropriate to the

conditions and uses of the material in which it is executed.

Most of our readers are no doubt aware that English lace is of three kinds, PilloAwlace, ox entiiely
hand-worked; Bobbin-net, or machine-made lace; and Run-lace, which is a combination of machine and
hand-work. The first we shall notice in illustration of one of the beautiful products of Iloniton, in Deionshiie,
and the second, in a subsequent article on Nottingham ingenuity. As the object now engiaved belongs to the
third kind, we shall confine our remarks at present to “run-lace,” and its fabrication, a blanch of tiade almost
entirely carried on at Nottingham.

The ground of the article is machine-made, inasmuch as it consists generally of a piece of plain bobbin
net, with a regular mesh made—if white, of cotton thread; if black, ol silk, lhe piece of net, unbleached 01
dyed, is passed through a machine known as the “gassing-machine, by means of which it is exposed while
drawn along rapidly to the action of a great number of small gas-jets, the flame ot which selves to singe
off all loose filaments which would otherwise tend to make the net look coarse and indistinct. It is then

strained down flat, and printed by means of engraved wood-blocks, with the outline of the object intended

to be made, whether collar, cape, veil, berthe, &c., and with the general form of the pattern proposed to be

embroidered, or “ run in ” upon it. This work, which involves, or should involve, a considerable amount of

artistic ability, is generally sent out to be executed by a class of persons (distinct from the manufactureis)
a species of quasi-artists, whose studies are divided between the fine arts on the one hand, and the most

BLACK LACE FLOUNCE.

business-like attention to the fluctuations of fashion, which constitute what are known commercially as the
“ prevailing styles,” on the other.

We now come to the actual handwork portion of the process, and feeling the excellence of the description
of it given by Mr. George Dodd,* we transfer it to our pages. It is remarked that, “when the stamper has
imprinted on the net the outlines of the device, a ‘ pattern-setter ’ decides on the manner' in which the pattern
shall be filled up. For instance, if a leaf form part of the pattern, the stamper only gives the outline of the
leaf, and it rests with the pattern-setter to determine how the needle of the embroideress shall fill up the
device.” We must next transfer our attention to one of the humble homes of the numerous and lowly-paid
‘lace-runners.’ The term ‘embroidery’ does not seem to be much used in connexion with the Nottingham lace
trade, most of those who work on net with the needle being termed ‘lace-runners.’ Each workwoman has a
frame, on which the net is stretched out horizontally, at a height of about three feet from the ground. She sits
on a stool or chair, places her left hand under the stretched net, to keep it in a right position for working, and
with her right hand works the pattern with needle and thread in every part where the stamper has imprinted
a device. The needle is inserted between and among the meshes of the net, and stitches of greater or less
length taken, until there is a body of thread laid in sufficient to mark the device conspicuously. This working
round of the outline is called ‘ running ;’ while the filling up of the interior parts is termed either ‘ fining ’ or
‘ open working,’ according as the original meshes of the net are brought to a smaller or larger size by the
action of the needle. How, by the work of the needle, the meshes of the net may be made larger or smaller

will be easily comprehended by the one sex, and must be taken for granted by the other.

“ The mode in which this embroidery business is transacted is often thus: — A person takes from a

manufacturer as much work as twenty, or perhaps fifty, females can embroider, and she devotes as many

rooms as her house can afford to the reception of the workers, who pay to her a trifling sum (out of
their trifling earnings) for the use of the room. They all receive their work from the person who rents
the house, who pays them for their labour, deducting a rent for the frame-room, and a further trifle for
some other item. To eke out their earnings, the women in one room often have their meals in common, making
up, for a few pence, a hash or stew sufficient to dine seven or eight. There they sit for twelve or fourteen
hours a-day, with the head stooping over their work, plying the needle.”

On leaving the hands of the lace-maker, any accidental tears or faults in the net are made good by an
extremely skilful set of workwomen, whose needles imitate the most complicated meshes produced by the
machine. The work is then cleaned, bleached, or dyed, and dressed, i.e. rubbed with a composition of gum,
paste, &c., to give a certain amount of stiffness, varying according to the purposes of the object. Each
article is then cut out of the piece of plain net, the cutter being guided by the outline marked by the
stamper, and an edging sewn on to prevent the threads from unravelling. The articles are, lastly, examined,
sorted, pressed, ticketed, and packed, and are finally consigned to the merchant’s hands.

The veil engraved is a specimen of black silk run lace, manufactured in the manner above described,
lhe Times of Dec. 8, 1851, contains some remarks on the history and present state of that branch
of trade, so pungent and pertinent, that we cannot conclude our notice better than by reproducing them,

expi essing at the same time our earnest hope that the hint they convey may not be lost upon the <>'ood citizens
of Nottingham:—

“ The new and lar » e manufacture of black silk lace sprang into existence some four years ago, and it was
thought had become a branch of trade. Those who first engaged in it produced the best class of goods possible,
and by so doing beat the continental manufactures out of nearly every market, both for excellence and
cheapness. This accomplished, a system of adulteration and depreciation commenced on the part of rival
manufacturers at home, which has been carried to such extremities as seem calculated, if not abandoned
to anmlnlate the manufacture altogether. First, inferior silks were used, to enable them to undersell
manufacturers of the legitimate article; and latterly they have actually been working the warp of fine cotton,
anc even some of the bobbins; deceiving purchasers by putting little more silk into the goods, than merely

16 * threadS Whlch forra the figure with that material. This method of adulteration has brought

If this system^ ^ ^ ° f f ° W mCheS W1<le to M ’ and otller widths in the same proportion.

of the wor d T1 1 ^ nmufecture8 wil1 Portly grow into disrepute in all the best markets

com „, it . I’ «. scarcely of ,„ ch disreputable

competition and adulteration occurring anions them.”

tlie Textile Manufactures of Great Britain ” by George Dodd, p 2;

p ‘224. London, 1851.

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PLATE XXXI.

YASE,

FROM THE ROYAL MANUFACTORY AT SEVRES.

The general character and form of this object appear to have been derived by its skilful designer,
M. Dieterle, from some of those beautiful Majolica vessels which, during the sixteenth century, ministered
at once to ornament and utility, in containing the drugs dispensed at the pharmacies of \ enice, Florence,
Padua, &c. As we have seen in our notice of Mr. Minton’s vase (Plate XI.), the Italian objects referred to
were fabricated in a somewhat coarse earthenware body, tor which, in the Sevres manufactory, that exquisite
composition, the precise admixture of which has long engrossed the attention of French chemists, has been
substituted. The results of this substitution may be naturally inferred. The perfect purity and compactness
of the service, as it is called, in the Sevres manufacture, not only counteract the tendency to twist in firing
which is manifested in earthenware, but afford a much more brilliant ground for subsequent decoration. The
intense whiteness of the objects now produced at Sevres, is so great as to reflect light through every colour

applied upon them, and thus a clearness and transparency are given to the tints laid on, which far suipass

any that it was in the power ot the Italian painters to obtain on their comparatively dull mateiial.

In the remarks which accompanied Plate XI. an attempt was made to tiace the piogicss of Italian

pottery to the end of the sixteenth century. Towards the middle of that century a series of experiments

had been successfully carried out in France, through the activity and indomitable perseverance of the celebrated
Bernard de Palissy,*—on the composition of earthenware; on the application of opaque coatings ; on the varieties
of transparent enamel colours proper for painting on china; and on the best methods of piepaiing vitieous

glazes, with a view to protect the opaque, and enhance the brilliancy of the transparent colours. The labours

of Bernard de Palissy, and Leonard de Limousin the great reviver of the processes of the ancient Limoges
enamel, laid the foundation for that facility with which the earliest French painters on china enriched their

works with the most varied colours.

In our notice of Plate XIV. we indicated the various steps by which the manufacture of soft porcelain,
or pdte-tendre, was carried to its perfection; and we shall now, in a similar manner, endeavour to trace the
progress of the pdte-dure, or hard porcelain.

The body of the Oriental china which, about the commencement of the sixteenth century, began to lie

imported into Europe by the Dutch and Portuguese, presented the perfection of pdte-dure, and many efforts

were made to discover its ingredients. After considerable labour it was found to consist of a fusible clay,
known in China as Icao-lin, a substance which has preserved the same name in Europe; and of a material called
pe-tun-tse , which is decomposed feldspar. The glaze or covering known in China as yen, was compounded ot a
choice and finely-powdered feldspar, and a small quantity of che-kao, a species of gypsum, together with some
other matters, but never with the addition of either lead or tin.f

* We can scarcely direct our readers to a more interesting piece of autobiography than that of this extraordinary individual; who has recorded
i„ most erapliic terms 'the intensity of l.is opinions on subjects of every description, ami the remarkable acts to which bis strong eonv.ctions impelled
him. (Euvres de Bernard de Palissy, pablUes parFaujas de Saint-Fond, Pans, Jut.

~|- Brongniart, “ Traite ties Arts Ceraiuiqties.

' o '

SEVRES VASE.

M. Labarte informs us,* that although at an early period the raw materials were imported from the

East, they always arrived in a state of fine powder. Upon the composition of this powder some light was

thrown by the information collected in China by the celebrated Jesuit, Francois Xavier d’Entrecolles.f It was,

however, reserved for European chemists to recognise the materials and the proportions in which they

were mingled; and, above all, the sources from which similar materials could be procured. Many savans

attempted to resolve this problem; but it was only under the auspices of Frederick Augustus the First,

Elector of Saxony, at the commencement of the eighteenth century, that the desired result was obtained.

The celebrated Bottcher was born on the 4th of February, 1682, at Schlaiz, in A oigtland.J His earliest

studies in chemistry were directed, as was usual at that period, to the mysterious refinements of the

transmutation of metals, and the composition of elixirs; and the fame he had acquired at an early age

for his knowledge on these subjects, caused him to be brought to Dresden, and placed, in association with

the distinguished chemist Walter de Tschirnhaus, in the Royal Laboratory. Thus installed, Bottcher turned

his attention to the production of porcelain ; and, in 1708, lie attained complete success in the fabrication of

the celebrated red-ware k, own to collectors by the name of its inventor. This material is not strictly a

porcelain, but rather an extremely perfect red earthenware. It was at this period that accident led to the

discovery which had defied the labours of generations of students. Jean Schorr, a tradesman, in riding at

Aue, near Schneeberg, remarked that his horse trod into a soft, white earth. Struck with its appearance,

he reduced some of it to a powder, and successfully introduced it at Dresden as a substitute for the flour

then in use for the immense perruques commonly worn. Bottcher’s servant employed the new powder one

day in dressing the wig of his master, who, remarking that it was unusually heavy, questioned his domestic

as to the origin of the powder. Learning that it was an earth, he examined the material minutely, and to

his great delight discovered that it was no other than the long-sought material, kaolin. Availing himself of

this discovery, Bottcher produced, in 1709, a perfectly white and transparent porcelain, possessing all the

characteristics of the Chinese. Ilis success led to the formation of the celebrated establishment at Meissen,

from which the principal Courts of Europe were long supplied with imitations of Oriental china. For a

length of time every effort was made to keep the material and the processes secret; but, in spite of every

vigilance, it gradually extended into the different countries of Europe. In 1720, Stobzel, foreman of the works

at Meissen, succeeded in reaching Vienna, and establishing in that town the celebrated manufactory which

• *

has ever since remained under Imperial patronage.

At this period, as we have shown in our notice of Plate XIV., the French chemists, aided by the
important investigations of Reaumur, had arrived at a beautiful imitation of china, by means of the artificial
b°(ly known as pdte-tendre. In 1761 the French Government made a contract with Pierre Antoine Hannong,
of Stiasburg, for the acquisition of a knowledge of the Saxon processes, but with little beneficial result to
France, as the primary ingredients were wanting. In 1765, Guettard discovered a locality near Alencon, from
which both kaolin and feldspar could be procured. From some imperfection, however, he was unable from
these materials to fabricate a white porcelain; all the specimens of his execution being distinguished by a grey
tint. Chance, however, coming again to the assistance of science, brought to light the source of an abundant
supply of the greatest purity. Madame Darnet, the wife of a surgeon of Saint-Yreix, having remarked in a
1 avine in the neighbourhood of that town a peculiar white earth, fancied that it might supply the place of
soap m washing. Her husband, who had probably heard of the demand for china-clay, took some small
quantities of the earth to a druggist at Bordeaux, by whom they were forwarded to the celebrated chemist,
Macquer, who immediately ecognised in them the mueh-wished-for kaolin.

After having verified, m 1768, by a series of conclusive experiments, the importance of the supplies obtain¬
able from Saint-Yreix, Macquer established the fabrication of hard porcelain at Sevres, where it was soon carried
vith great activity. From that period the manufacture of porcelame dure and porcelaine tendre were
conducted together in the royal establishment, until 1805, when the latter was entirely superseded

cd.Ji.d " *■* * f,W "“** - ““ ““ of >"«

* dcs 0l, j ets d ’ Art q«i composent la Collection Debnige Dmnenil.” Paris, 1847.

1 Vu/r llT'c" ri S ‘ n ’ &C \°‘ " ,0 M “ ,u,fi,ct " re ot ‘Porcelain and Glass.”— Lurdner's Cyclopedia, vol. xxvi. p. f),
+ ’ Uk D ‘- GuStav Klc “'"' “ Koniglicl. Sachsische Porcellan and Gefasse-Sandun,.” Bread™.

SPECIMEN OF

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PLATE XXXII.

INDIAN LAC-WORK.

In our notice of Plate II. we gave a short description of lac, and the various processes of its application
to purposes of commerce, reserving for the present article a few observations on the knowledge of art displayed
by the Oriental designers of objects in that material.

A pattern in which two colours only are employed to contrast with one another, affords a more ready
illustration of the principle upon which such compositions should be based than one in which the combinations
are complicated by the graduated intensity of several tints. It was for this reason that we piefeiied to
illustrate the artistic principles applicable to our present subject by a simple object, such as that engraved
in the accompanying Plate, rather than by the more complicated scales of form and colour displayed in the

patterns given in Plate II.

In the box-top figured in our present illustration, even the uninitiated must appreciate the judgment
with w hi ch the designer has contrived to balance the areas destined to be tinted with the different colouis
employed. Among the most remarkable peculiarities of Indian ornamentation, as applied to plane surfaces,
are the flatness exhibited by the leaves, flowers, &c., of which it is composed, and the general appearance of
ecpial surface which its various parts present. In too many patterns of European design the eye is drawn
to one particular portion of an object which should retain the uniform aspect of a flat surface; and accoi ding
to the amount or quality of the light or colour at that point, so does that portion of the surface appear either
to advance towards or retire from the spectator. Thus, a shawl upon a lady’s back may frequently appear to
protrude or recede, in other parts than those which the form of its wearer may account for.

In Indian designs, the happy effect of flatness is obtained partly by the judicious balance of quantity between
the area of the field and that of the pattern, and partly by a careful preservation of the same ratio in every
portion over which the pattern may extend. So skilfully is this balance maintained, that we have remarked
in many Indian patterns, that if the whole of the ground stand to the pattern in the latio of three to one, one
sixteenth of the whole surface measured, in any part, will be found to contain three of ground to one of pattern.
It is scarcely to be supposed, that the Indian artists are guided by laws so mechanical as those to which w e
allude, but rather that the refinement of taste, engendered by their traditional education, precludes their tolei ation
of any departure from those harmonious proportions which the practice of ages has sanctioned as most pleasing

and agreeable.

In the “ Journal of Design ” (vol. v. p. 92 ) Mr. Owen Jones has made some valuable remarks on the
principles which should govern the distribution of plane surfaces in decoration. In defining some abstiact
principles, applicable in their fullest extent to the artistic productions contributed from India to the Great
Exhibition, that gentleman observes, that “one guiding principle of the ornamentation of the Orientals appeals
to have been, that their decoration w r as always what may be called surface decoration, lheir general guiding
forms were first considered, and those forms decorated. Their flowers are not natural flowers; but conven¬
tionalized by the materials in which they worked. We do not see, as in European works, a highly-wrought
imitation of a natural flower, with its light and shade, struggling to stand out from the surface on which it is
worked, but a conventional representation, sufficiently near to suggest an image to the mind, without destroying
the unity of the object it is intended to decorate. There is a total absence of shadow. The patterns of their
shawls and carpets are harmonious and effective, from the proper distribution of form and colour, and do not

INDIAN LAC-WORK.

require to be heightened in effect, by strong and positive oppositions. The great aim appears to be, that coloured
objects, viewed at a distance, should present a neutralized bloom. Each step nearer exhibits fresh beauties;
and a close inspection, the means whereby such effects are produced. In their diapers and scroll-work, one
of the means by which this harmonizing effect is produced appears to be, that the ornament and the ground
occupy equal areas. To obtain this effect requires no ordinary skill, and it can only be arrived at by highly-
trained hands and minds.”

In turning from the question of the artistic principles involved in its decoration, to the actual object before
the reader, we may remark that the process of its fabrication is analogous to that usually adopted in China.
Similar works, though of a somewhat coarser description, are common in various parts of the Indian peninsula;
and the present specimen can scarcely be regarded as offering any distinctly local characteristics. I he number
of boxes and toys executed in this mode of workmanship in India is very great; and scarcely a traveller returns
from that region to Europe without bringing back some evidence of the skill of its natives in the application
of lac to every description of articles.

These are, perhaps, only exceeded in quantity and diversity by the productions of China. Many interesting
illustrations of processes similar to those we have described in our account of Plate II. were comprised in
Mr. Dunn’s extraordinary collection of works of Chinese Art and Industry, exhibited at Ilyde Park Corner
in 1842. Amongst these were various boxes of various kinds,—viz. : to contain fruits, vegetables, cakes of ink,
water-colours, sweetmeats, wedding presents of silk, &c. ike. There were also lacquered cases, containing
smaller boxes for trinkets, lacquered fan-cases, red lacquered boxes for culinary purposes, others used in gaming,
and for travelling purposes, chess-boards, snuff-bottles, and many other articles. In the interesting Catalogue
of that collection by W. B. Langdon, the curator (8vo. 1842), the following note is appended to one of the
principal objects in lacquered ware :

“ The lacquered or japanned ware of China is well known. All substances that are dry and rigid, as woods,
metals, and prepared paper, admit of being japanned. The fine varnish used for this purpose is obtained from
a shrub called fseih-shoo (Rhus remix ), from which it distils like gum. It is poisonous in a liquid state ; and
hence great caution is used, both by those who gather and those who work in it, to shield themselves from
its noxious qualities. It is capable of receiving all colours, though black is the most common. More than
fifty coats of varnish are sometimes put on.”

Anothei ai tide in the Chinese Collection was described as a u Superb Cabinet from Soo-chow, in the
pi ounce of Fokeen, a locality famous for its manufacture of lacquered ware.”

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PLATE XXXIII

RICHARD CQ4UR DE LION,

A STATUE DESIGNED FOR BRONZE, BA' THE BARON MAROCHETTI.

Whenever popular judgment is concurrent, there is good ground for trusting to its correctness,
whether the matter involved he a question of fact, of wisdom, or of taste. The universal admiration
which was excited by this grand Equestrian Statue, alike in the mind of the connoisseur and in the senses
of the most uncultivated who flocked to gaze upon the marvels of the Great Exhibition, may therefore
be regarded as an unquestionable tribute to the power of the truly great artist. Few among the multitudes

who looked with pleasure upon that work could at all appreciate the nature of the peculiar difficulties

which its great scale presented. The knowledge of proportion and of effect which is absolutely requisite
to be brought to bear upon a statue executed two or three times the size of life, and probably in a number
of detached pieces, is not only far greater in amount than that which will suffice to reproduce nature on
its ordinary scale, but is necessarily much more precise.

In consequence of the extreme difficulty of appreciating, in the limits of a studio, the general appear¬
ance of a great object, destined to be seen by the ever-varying light of day, much must be trusted to
rule, and modelled in obedience to the prescriptions of perhaps erroneous, or at least prejudiced, experience.
The obvious danger arising from this necessity is, that the work should be tamed down, in process of working
together, into undue conventionality of style, and life and fire be extinguished beneath it. To recognise,
then, in an heroic statue on such a scale as the Richard, all the truth and ease which might be rapidly

dashed into form in a small clay sketch, is to confess the triumph of genius over mechanical difficulties,

and to acknowledge the true prerogative of Art—to please by Art—and yet to show no Ait.

The talent of the Baron Marochetti appears to have developed itself, or to have been developed by
accidental circumstances in an especial degree in this department of the sculptors art, owing to his having
been called upon to devote himself sedulously to the study of those ingredients which are necessary to
be combined to make up a grand equestrian statue. W ithin the last fifteen years the Baron has executed
a considerable number of such works, and as much of his artistic life has been spent in their production
we shall notice the principal, in the order in which they have been modelled.

About thirteen years ago, Charles Albert, king of Sardinia, desiring to raise a monument to the cele¬
brated Emanuel Philibert, duke of Savoy, victor in the fields of St. Quentin and Gravelines, selected the
Baron Marochetti as the fitting artist to carry his design into execution. lie was justified in his choice,
not only by the talent which the then youthful sculptor had displayed, but by the fact that, though born
in France, his ancestors were Piedmontese. This statue, which is of colossal size, has been erected on the

Piazza di San Carlo, at Turin, a situation worthy of so fine a work. Adopting the costume of the period,

the sculptor has worked out, with extreme freedom and care, the details of the armour worn by the warrior.
The action, both of the man and the horse, is in the highest degree spirited. The latter, yielding to the
action of the curb, is restrained in the midst of violent effort: and his rider, apparently unmoved by the
exertion of the animal, is inserting the point of his sword into its scabbard with the grace and dexterity

of a finished cavalier. The head of the Duke beautifully conveys the character of his mind. Warlike

RIC1IAKD CCEUR DE LION.

ener-v is associated with great refinement, and the expression is admirably suited to the statesman whose
judicious policy gave peace to his country, after he had proved his prowess m the field.

' Marochetti’/success in the execution of this statue greatly enhanced Ins popularity and led to Ins
emplovment on some important works during the most prosperous days of the reign of Louis Plnhppe
Th reputation he acquired in these commissions accounts for the fact that, in the year 1844, he was minted
to undertake the execution in bronze of the colossal equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington at Glasgow.
In the performance of the task thus confided to him, he has been scarcely less successful than in the work
above described. He has, however, given to both the horse and its rider a more tranquil action, harmonising
; vith th e quiet determination and advanced age of the great British commander. The bas-reliefs on the base
of this monument, in the principal of which are embodied incidents from the battle of Waterloo .and the
campaign in Egypt, are among the most successful and spirited bas-reliefs ever executed m meta in t ns

country. .

On his return to Paris, about three years later, the Baron Marochetti received his most important
commission from Louis Philippe, who directed him to prepare a statue of the Emperor Napoleon, to be placed
upon the esplanade of the Hotel des Invalides. Marochetti has moulded this subject three times the size ot life,
and invested it with a breadth and grandeur of style corresponding with its elevated character, and the scale
on which it is designed. The severe lines formed by the Imperial robes, and the composed dignity of the
fio-ure, contrasted with the vigorous action of the horse, admirably suggest the colossal intellect which could sit
unmoved while all was heaving in action beneath. This statue is thirty feet in height, from the head of the
Emperor to the hoofs of the horse, and is of the same dimension in length. In February, 1848, the modelling
of this figure was just completed, and the Baron was from day to day expecting instructions for casting it.
in bronze? but the disastrous revolution of that year interfered with the realisation of his hopes, and compelled
him to seek tranquillity in this country.

With an energy undiminished by his reverses, Marochetti vigorously set to work in England, and com¬
menced the splendid statue which forms the subject of our illustration. Certainly no living, and probably
no ancient sculptor, has been enabled to carry out so important a series of large equestrian compositions.

In addition to the great works to which we have alluded, an infinity of groups, single figures, and busts,
of smaller size but equal beauty, have issued from the atelier of the Baron ; and these have been disseminated
more particularly in France. One of his most important works in marble is a group representing “ I he
Assumption of the Magdalen/’ who is borne upwards by a number of angels. This great composition forms one
of the most striking ornaments of the Church of the Madeleine at Paris. In the same beautiful building

he also executed two angels, standing at the sides of the principal altar, in the front ot which he has also

introduced a marble bas-relief of “ The Last Supper” A figure of an angel, forming the principal pinnacle
of the Church of St. Germain l’Auxerrois, is also a work of much spirit and grandeur ; and among the
portrait statues of heroic size which have added to the reputation of Marochetti, we may particularly mention
the figures of Bertholet, the celebrated chemist of the Empire, and Latour d’Auvergne, the premier grenadier

of France.

It is to be hoped that the genius of Marochetti will not be unappreciated in this country, and that the noble

statue of “ Richard Coeur de Lion” may not be suffered to remain in plaster, confined within the limits of

the artist’s studio.

FLATE 34

i i \iH v

J 51 » EOH, DE l

0 R N A M E N TAL

LONDON »P N- f n AND -JB i.s-io

M DlOty WVATT pi R E X T

o U H STAND FROM

FEB • !n 1852 By DAV 1 SON.LITHOGRAPHERS

TUNIS

TO THE QUEEN

F BEDFORD LlTH

PLATE XXXIV.

ORNAMENTAL GUN-STAND FROM TUNIS.

1 he necessity for providing, in every hot country, such inclosures as maintain privacy, and at the same
time ensure efficient ventilation, has conduced, more especially among the Oriental nations, to the perfection
of a style of openwork design comparatively unknown to the inhabitants of colder climes. Such ingenious
reticulations of line as spread over a plain surface, and admit of numerous perforations, which rather enhance
than interfere with the symmetry of the entire composition, found especial favour among the faithful followers
of the Prophet, and wherever their conquests have planted his standard this especial style of design is found to
flourish in its highest perfection.

In India, in Spain, on the north-west coast of Africa, and throughout Persia and Turkey, both in stone,
in wood, and in plaster, numerous external inclosures and internal partitions are to be met with, framed on the
principle to which we have alluded. These screens, for so they may be fairly called, serve at once to effectually
conceal from the gaze of the distant spectator the precise form of any dark-eyed beauty who may take delight
in peeping through their apertures, and at the same time to enable the lady to examine clearly and at her
ease whatever passing incidents may attract her attention and vary the monotony of the customary liareem life.

It is, however, in Cairo, above all other localities, that this style of enclosure has been most lavishly
indulged in. Perforated stone and wood-work are there to be met with as the general basis of the archi¬
tectural decorations of the most ancient mosques as well as of the most modern mansions. The overhanging
galleries, which tend to still further diminish the width of the already narrow streets, consist of framing of
w r ooden quarters, heads, and sills, so arranged as to leave openings which are almost invariably filled in with
wooden lattice-work. The panels which are nearest the ground are generally closed, and the pattern as it
rises increases in openness. Above the level of the head the air is allowed to enter as freely as possible, and
thus, while the occupants of the apartments are hidden, light and air are permitted to enter.

The above description of inclosure is, in proportion to the relative size of the two cities, scarcely less
prevalent at Tunis than at Cairo; and in the open-work filling-in of the various panels an almost equal
amount of ingenuity is displayed. In Plate XV., an interesting illustration was given of the mode in which
plaster is frequently perforated to form a screen, and in the present plate we offer a specimen in wood of equal
beauty, exhibiting many of the most commonly-occurring patterns in the artistic and lace-like joinery of the
Tunisians. Although in the object engraved, which serves merely as a species of ornament across which guns
and other arms are supported by metal brackets fixed on each side of it, the interstices are backed up with
coloured foil and with looking-glass, and by imagining that back-ground removed, we may form a notion of the
extreme elaboration to which the ordinary wood-work, framed on the perforated principle, is carried. One
of the most ingenious modes by which economy in the formation, and strength in the construction of the
lighter varieties of wooden screen-work are frequently insured, is by stringing alternately a number of wooden
beads and rolls upon a first series of iron rods, which are laid parallel to one another. The beads are also
pierced in a direction contrary to that by which they are strung to the first series of iron rods, and a second series
of iron rods are passed through them, as well as through rolls, which serve to separate the two crossing lines of

ORNAMENTAL GUN-STAND EROM TUNIS.

the iron rods. The effect produced is that of a net-work of wooden rolls, the intersecting points of which are
marked in all cases by beads. The admirable effect in interior decoration produced by this and other scarcely
less ingenious modes of arranging wooden lattice-work, was agreeably shown in the beautiful picture representing
the interior of an apartment in an hareem, which was exhibited by Mr. F. Lewis at the Gallery of the Society
of Painters in Water-Colours of London, in the year 1849. The flying lights and charming chequered effects
produced by such perforations, and the amount of clearness with which external objects may be seen through
them, was defined with a care and certainty of execution which offered the best possible guarantee for accuracy.

Mr. Drummond Ilay, who may fairly boast of having been one of the very few Europeans who have
ever been admitted within the jealous precincts of the hareem, has fortunately recorded his impressions of
the interior of such a locale as pleasingly with his pen as Mr. Lewis has with his pencil. The graphic
language of his description conjures up for the imagination a scene in which the subject of our present
illustration,—the beautiful doors which were executed in a similar style,—the perforated plaster-work which we
engraved in Plate XV., and many of the other novel and exquisite objects, which made the Tunisian exhibition
so universally interesting, are vividly recalled to the memory. Mr. Ilay* observes that “ the habitation of
the favourite consisted of a court open to the sky, with a room on each side ; a fountain played in the
centre, and in one quarter there was a vapour-bath. The floor and sides of the court were prettily laid in
coloured tiles, bordered with precepts from the Koran. The folding-doors which opened into the principal
dormitory were beautifully carved in intricate geometrical figures, and the walls were richly decorated in
arabesque stucco-work ; fine velvet couches and cushions of embroidered leather were ranged around the
room; and opposite the door, on an elaborately painted rack, hung a fine Algerine gun, the barrel of which
was curiously damascened with gold, and the stock inlaid with coral and silver. Below it was suspended
a clumsy Moorish sword in a scabbard of gold and velvet.” The ceiling was adorned with minute mouldings,
richly painted and gilded, and of the same intricate devices as are yet to be seen in the Alhambra of the
Calipliat of Grenada. At one end of the room stood the trousseau box of a bride, made of the famous
pine of the Moorish Highlands called FAris ; it was elegantly carved in Saracenic fashion, and from the fine
perfume of the timber must, probably, have been well adapted for the preservation of apparel. On this box
were placed an eight-stringed lute and the noisy tomtom. “The only apertures for light and air to these
apartments when the doors are shut are worked in plaster , seeming almost as delicate as filigree ; they fill
several niches, in the form of what we call v Gothic windows/ and of these there were three or four over
each doorway : there was, however, one small chamber in the second story, out of harm’s way, which had
two tolerably-sized windows, closely latticed, however, whence the prisoned inmates of the hareem might

unseen feast their eyes on a valley of orange and citron plantations which border a serpentine stream named
Boosafa,—the Father of Clearness.”

* “Western Barbary, by John Drummond Hay, Esq.” London, 1844.

P-A^E 3£

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PLATE XXXV.

CENTRE-PIECE IN SILVER,

BY WAGNER OF BERLIN.

This beautiful object, which was exhibited by the firm of John Wagner and Son, Jewellers and Silversmiths
tor several generations to his Majesty the King of Prussia, was executed by Albert Wagner, son of the present
head of the above firm. This young man, who at the present time is no more than twenty-five years of age,
was educated at the Royal Academy of Arts at Berlin, his native place, and has worked as a practical silversmith
for only four years, having in that short period acquired a dexterity of manipulation rarely to be met with
in workmen of much longer standing. lie received honorary distinction from the Academy of Berlin in the
year 1851, and he has been also rewarded with the Council medal of the Great Exhibition for the work under
consideration, his first really important undertaking. In it the artist has attempted to portray the progress
of man s endeavours to rise, by the subjection of material nature, to a final triumph over the powers of Evil.
The rude conflict with Nature, to force her contribution of supplies for physical necessities, is represented
in the lower portion of the composition ; and, rising upwards, the gradual contest with all that is sensual and
degrading, and the ultimate assertion of the supremacy of the Ideal. At the base are seated representatives
of the Nomadic races, herding with the brutes, surrounded by the animal life on which they preyed, and grouped
around the trunk of an oak, which typifies the primaeval forest life, and suggests the material of the Ark,
by means of which man first rode triumphant on the waters—and of the primitive plough, by which the earth was
made to yield her increase. Around this oak three female figures of Agriculture, Horticulture, and Vine-culture
me giouped, lepresenting the successive steps in advance of people having fixed places of abode. The vine
v as selected as emblematical of the most spiritual ot these stages, when, the commoner wants being supplied, man
seeks a joy and gladness beyond, leading to the developement of the industrial arts and sciences. This
foi eshadowed piogiess is expressed in the reliefs showing human beings engaged in the occupations of civilised
life, these leliefs form a frieze around the bowl of the vase; and on its margin the efforts of man are
ciowned by evergreens the ivy and the laurel. Above all, springing from a palm of Victory, soars a Genius,
grasping the torch of holy fire, and radiant with the triumph of mind over matter. It is impossible to refrain
from admiring this hymn of life, the passing scenes of which are apprehended by a poet’s mind, and realised by
an artist’s hand.

The vase weighs altogether ninety pounds, and its value is 1800/. The detached figures—which were
modelled by the first artists in Berlin from drawings by Mr. Wagner—are cast, but the reliefs round the bowl
are beaten up ; and the whole ot the chasing and finishing was executed by that gentleman, who devoted to
the task no less than eight months’ incessant labour.

In a communication with which we have been favoured by Mr. Wagner, he urges the motives which
induced him to oxidise, the metal, and thus give his centrepiece the appearance of old work ; and, as an
ingenious exposition of the arguments which may be urged generally in favour of such a mode of treatment,
we gladly give a free translation of them to our readers. Mr. Wagner remarks, that “ Silver, although very
ductile to work, is nevertheless disadvantageous to any artistic composition, from its grey and polished appearance.

CENTRE-PIECE IN SILVER.

possessing neither the warm, solid colour of bronze, nor the transparency of marble. Whether polished or
white, silver shows cold and false reflected lights, where in other metals there would be unbroken shadows.
The oxidising process gives to the hollows their proper amount of shade ; and in order to heighten this effect
the whole of the work is covered with slight indentations, made with a smooth chasing-tool. By this means
an effort has been made to represent in the figures the texture of the flesh, and in the vegetable productions their
freshness and moisture. This is different from the usual mode of treatment, in which ‘figures and ornament
are covered with an unmeaning and monotonous granulation. This kind of texture is certainly not true to
nature, as but few animals, and only the underside of the leaves of some plants, present this rough appearance,
hut, on the contrary, show pores and impressed lines/’ Mr. Wagner offers the above explanation of this
peculiar mode of treatment, as he conceived his intention to have been somewhat misapprehended, not only
by the general public, but by many members of his own profession.

Our young artist, who, as we have stated, comes of a line of celebrated goldsmiths, although supporting
an independent establishment, has in this work laboured for his father, Mr. J. Wagner, the present conductor
of the manufactory. The latter gentleman succeeded his father in the atelier from which many of the most
important works which have for many years been executed in Germany have proceeded. Amongst these
may be mentioned the reproduction of the celebrated Lanti vase, now in the possession of the King of Prussia,
and the wedding outfit of the Queen of Bavaria, both in silver. Much charming jewellery has also been
executed for the Countess Redern in Berlin, and the Princess Witgenstein of St. Petersburg.

Ihe name of Wagner is celebrated in France, through the exertions of M. Carl Wagner (brother to
M. John, and, consequently, uncle to M. Albert Wagner); but as we shall have occasion to allude to his
caieei in noticing the productions of his successors in the firm he established at Paris, we shall at present

confine our remarks to an intimation of the fact of his relationship to the great Berlin family of art
workmen.

1 rnssia is to be regarded as especially fortunate in preserving to modern times the traditions of those
old masters whose fame and whose works spread from Germany over the whole continent of Europe; and as
v\e shall hope on a future occasion to refer to them, we shall notice only a few of those fellow-labourers in
the same line with the Wagners, who now maintain the reputation of Prussian workmanship in the precious
metals. Among them must be especially mentioned Ilossauer of Berlin, by whom the shield, designed by
Cornelius, modelled by Fischer, and now in the possession of the Prince of W r ales, was put together. He was
at fiist only hi ought up as a tin-worker, but, turning his attention to the fabrication of objects in the precious
metaF, he succeeded in engrafting on that business many of the processes made use of in his original avocation,
and thus he has taught the goldsmiths the art of stamping in thin sheets, with steel dies, galvanizing,
gadrooning, and the use of engraved rollers. During Schinkel’s lifetime he was assisted with drawings by
t lat git at artist, b\ means of which lie was enabled to produce some first-rate works; more recently, his
gieat commercial ability has been developed in connexion with the manufacture of plated goods.

Geoige t itto of Beilin, a favourite pupil of M. C. Wagner, is celebrated for his repousse work, and for
his preservation of much of his great master’s dexterity.

The manufactories of jewellery at Ilanau, Stuttgart, and Pforrheim, continually bring into the market much

g00 ( work, the forms of their objects and the perfection of their enamels being particularly carefully attended

to. The productions of Weisshaupt, Horst, Daines, Bakes, and others, are considered to evidence both much
skill, and not a little good taste.

B R 0 i D E R i

A \

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BOOT

t t F.

R 0 N T

352 £

UNDC S

PL.SHE t

PLATE XXXVI.

EXHIBITED BY HIS HIGHNESS ME Ell ALI MOORAD OF SCINDE.

From few districts of India was a more satisfactory collection of specimens of national produce contributed
to the Great Exhibition than from Scinde. The liberality and.exertion with which Ins Highness Meer Ah Moorad
made arrangements for the collection of such a series of objects as should completely illustrate the costume,

habits, and leading manufactures of the country, were especially to be commended.

It appears probable, however, in spite of the beauty of many articles thus contributed, that the trade of
Scinde is, as compared with that of many other districts of the Peninsula, in no very favourable condition.
Mr. Thornton, in his “Gazetteer of the Countries adjacent to India on the North-West,” presents an anything
but flattering picture of the manufacturing capabilities of Scinde. lie remarks, “ that the state of manufacturing
industry is generally rude, and few articles are produced suited for exportation.” Among the branches of industry
which have been pursued with most success in various districts, lie especially notices the government establishment
for the formation of weapons at Hyderabad. lie remarks, “ that in that city the fabrication of swords, spears,
fire-arms, and other arms, offensive and defensive, has been greatly encouraged by the Ameers; and in consequence
is carried to a degree of perfection surprising among a people in general so unskilled.” Weaving and embroidery
are also successfully conducted in the same locality; and it is most probable that the object engraved is a specimen
of the ability of those engaged in the latter occupation in that city. Of the other manufactures more especially
involved in the production of this object we gather, that “ Tanning is successfully carried on, especially at
Larkhana, where excellent shoes, sword-belts, and leather water-bags, are made. The bark used is generally
that of the Acacia. Silk goods are fabricated at Tatta, Roree, Kyerpoor, and Shikarpoor, the raw material being
principally obtained from Persia and Central Asia. Tatta also manufactuies loongees, 01 rich nauow

silk and cotton, sometimes intermixed with golden thread, and embroidered.

It is but just to observe, that the political constitution of Scinde and its frequent internal discoids are

operated most unfavourably upon the developement of its natural resomces. liadition

glory previous to its invasion by the Persians in the sixth century, and of its subsequent struggles with successive.

ICaliphs. From that period to the present it has been bandied from conqueror to eonqueroi, its commeicc nt\tr _
having been allowed the seasons of peace requisite for the developement of national piospeiity.
comparatively tranquil, though feeble, rule of its later possessors, the Ameers of the Talpoor dynast) of

Beloochees, it in some degree revived; but it is to be feared that the misfortunes necessarily brought upon

it during the late war will long paralyse the efforts of such of its population as might, under more favourable

circumstances, have been capable of great things.

In Mr. James Bumes’ interesting Narrative of his visit to the Court of Scinde, published at Bombay m 1829,
a very -rapldc account will be found of the state and pomp with which the Ameers conducted their durbars, or
■wand audiences, together with sundry particulars of the ordinary costume, to which we may suppose the
magnificent boots, -from one of which the pattern engraved was taken, to have been an adjunct of extraordinary

splendour.

EMBROIDERED BOOT-FRONT.

This specimen of embroidery affords a charming example of the beautiful combination of colour for which
the Oriental nations are so eminently distinguished, and on which we shall proceed to offer a few remarks in

continuation of those given in our notice of I late XXXII.

Colours, as correctly made use of, should vary in combination with every variety of surface to which they

may be applied; and it is the province of the decorator, by taking advantage of certain properties inherent in
each tint, to enhance the effects aimed at by the designer who prescribes the conditions of form. The three
primary tints affect the apparent relative proximity of surfaces to the eye in three different ways. Yellow
advancing blue receding, and red maintaining an intermediate position; secondaries and tertiaries advancing
or receding in proportion to the predominance of one or other of the primaries.

The mode of application derivable from these peculiar properties is easily illustrated, by imagining a plane
surface, in which a number of regular equidistant indentations are made, and to which a number of fillets are
attached, passing between the indentations. The simplest proper mode of colouring such an object would
obviously be to tint as much of the original surface as was left, red; to tint the sunk faces, blue; to tint the
projecting fillets, yellow, or to gild them, and to leave the edges at right angles to the surfaces, white, so as to
interpose a neutral between every colour, preventing the confusing effect of their otherwise apparent blending.
If the relative areas of the three varieties of surface thus coloured stand to one another in the proportion of
sunk face 8, projecting face 5, and original surface 3, then the whole object will keep its distance; if, however,
any one be increased or diminished, the whole object will appear to approach or recede pari passu with the
altered ratios. Centuries of patient experiment have educated the Indian, as they did the Persian and Moorish
eye, to scales of area, by the invariable preservation of which a pattern set out and coloured on the mosaic
principle, can be applied to a plane surface, and no part of that surface shall appear, at a little distance, to
advance before, or recede from, the general plane of the surface to which the decoration is applied. One great
condition in the treatment of colour as of form being, that the proportions of the subdivisions of every part
stand in the same ratio to the original subdivision of the whole area to be decorated. If any one portion differs
in that respect it is certain to make a blot, or, as the French say, de faire iron, in the composition, destroying
its harmony and integrity.

It is by an intuitive recognition of these and other simple general principles, that the Oriental nations
have been enabled to adjust their arrangements of colour with such exquisite precision, giving apparent
salience to every projecting form, and flatness to every plane surface, and contrasting the two in obedience
to the great law of “ simultaneous contrast.” It is by such a mode of treatment, whether applied to
architectural or sculpturesque form, to wall-painting, or printed or woven fabrics, that subdued effect is
allied with the utmost richness and nobility of decoration.

PLATE XXXVII.

THE FIRST STEP,

A STATUE IN MARBLE, BY PIETllO MA6NI OF MILAN

The artist by whom this pleasing group has been executed is still quite young; and, it we are rightly
informed, this may almost be looked upon as in every respect his “ First Step.” The popularity obtained by
Magni through his contribution of this work to the Academy of Fine Arts at Milan, has, we believe,
procured him many commissions, and there is every reason to hope that his future career may fulfil the

promise held out by this his first important exhibited work.

Among the beautiful objects contributed to the Great Exhibition by the sculptors of Milan, it won

have been possible to have selected many of greater academic correctness, and treading with a more reverent

footstep in the traditions of the antique. From the fine works of Fraccaroli, whose manner was strong y
suo-o-estive of that of Canova; of Strazza, whose “ Ishmael fainting with Hunger” was a work of very great
power; of Gaetano Motelli, whose group of “Paolo and Francesca da llimini” evinced a high aim and
poetic imagination; or of Raffaelle Monti, whose “ Eve after the Fall,” and other statues, displayed a tlioroug i

acquaintance with his art and a great mastery over the technical difficulties of the material,-specimens

might have been chosen possessing even greater merit than that which forms the subject of our present Plate.
We have, however, preferred to engrave Magni’s group as being probably the most important work in

Picturesque Sculpture in the whole Exhibition.

There is no class of objects more difficult to redeem from vulgarity than that in which every-day costume
and incident are depicted on a scale approaching that of life. The directness of the imitation leads the
spectator to demand an almost greater power of reproducing nature than can possibly be accordant w it i ie
conditions of the sculptor’s art or the nature of the material in which he works. The demand tor co Qui¬
to perfect the resemblance becomes almost as imperative as the supply of that demand would inevitably p.ove
painful. Thus subjects of a picturesque character, unless treated with very remarkable skill, almost necessan y
require to be rendered on a scale considerably smaller than life. The difference of dimension at once precludes
the idea that the work is merely a transcript of nature; the mind recognises the conventionalities pecu iai

to the art, and makes allowance for the necessary departure from nature in the details. Thus a ,e

carrying out of the minutiae of modern costume becomes perfectly agreeable in a statuette; and thus e
application of colour, which would be intolerable in a life-sized figure, senes to < 011,11 an additi n
on the pleasing little groups of shepherds and shepherdesses, fine ladies and fine gentlemen, which constitute

the ordinary subjects of old French and Dresden china. It is scarcely less painful to meet with a subject

of every-day life-one in which the eye instantly detects that the marble mantle or shoe by no means caines
out the’ idea of cloth or leather-represented to the full scale of nature, than it is to see an idea work,
portrayin''' the grand emotions of a god-like energy, reduced to the usual limits of works m 1 anan o, biscuit
As even- Hass of material involves on the part of the artist a mode of treatment consonant with its
conditions of plasticity, so every variation of scale to a certain extent requires a variety of convention^
The breadth and massive modelling of drapery which strike us as noble m a statue of heroic size, would

THE FIRST STEP.

appear coarse and clumsy in one considerably reduced in dimensions; and the exquisite
or an embroidered garment which we admire in silver in a plateau, could not but

in any bronze of a monumental character. bestowed on

The late Mr. Wyatt of Rome, whose skill in apportioning the exact amount f finish he be

even- part of his statues to the material of which it was intended to convey an idea was truly lena ,

w., ,‘cu.tomed to acknowledge gratefully the ae.ist.tce he had received in theory from the mte.c.tmg - ■

“r do Quincy ou ” Imitation in the Fine Ark,” ily • c.refnl stud, of the genera principles

“ in that excellent work, of those which the critical .cm.,, of Visconti and ^ ^

- - -.»• - - *-r y ,:r;l:, n X™ “

the Literature of the Fine Arts,” a just scale may be established in the ait.

limitations under which contemporary costume and the most ordinary actions ma\ be len eiec '

any discordant emotions.

It is by a judicious attention to such principles, that Pietro Magm has been ena > cc o en is
sympathies for the graceful and natural incident he has represented, without allowing either an. un ue
obtrusion of manual dexterity or a slothful coarseness of execution to disturb the tiuthfulness niti
idea of maternal affection and youthful confidence has been represented.

P l u T E., 38

GBOl'P or CL A ■- tr CUNT -iAR R AC h OF 3

B G H E >/( 1 A

LONDON. PR NTtC A N G PU tills h E [ F£-*. v , t .

□ a V & $ !!' N. t • r - C f> A H E P s ~ C T ' E. O u £ £ N

PLATE XXXVIII.

A GROUP OF GLASS,

BY COUNT HARRACH OF BOHEMIA.

The process by means of which objects similar to those we have engraved in the present Plate are formed
is, to Maze over a vessel of one coloured glass a thin coating ot another. The engraver then cuts away
the outer surface in parts, so as to exhibit the desired pattern. This method is the same as that which
was followed by the ancients, and may be seen in the Portland Vase, as well as in numerous beautiful frag¬
ments, many of which, of the most interesting description, are still preserved in the Museum of the Studii

at Naples.

In modern times great excellence has been attained in this manufacture in Bohemia, particularly in the
establishment of Count Harrach, at Neuwelt, where, in the year 1844, more than 300 workmen were con¬
stantly employed in all the different departments. These men are all natives of the place, who have been
educated and gradually led on to their present skill by the superintendents of the manufactory. Further
efforts have been made of late years with the same object by establishing a drawing-school for the workmen,
the favourable results of which are already visible in the greater taste shown in the improved forms and design
of the objects produced. The liberal proprietor of the establishment has also encouraged the labours of his
men by providing a fund for the superannuated, as well as for the widows and orphans. The quartz used
in the manufacture at these glass-works is derived from the neighbourhood of Stepanitz, about ten miles
distant from Neuwelt. The sand used in the furnace is obtained from Friedstein, and the fire-clay from
Collin. The manufactory has two melting-furnaces for preparing the raw material, besides all the necessary
ovens and furnaces for annealing, and for the delicate processes of the manufacture. Hie machmeiy employe
is worked by water. Besides the number of hands engaged in the establishment, a good deal of the cutting

and polishing is done in private shops.

The manufactory of Count Harrach produces almost every variety of object now made in glass; an
whilst it exhibits great perfection in all the various departments of melting processes, in colour, in cutting,
and in polishing, it is particularly remarkable for the execution of cameos and intaglios m glass, which are
afterwards inserted in vases, &c. This establishment has also obtained considerable celebrity for its light

yellow and cream-coloured glass. .

Bohemia is not the only district of Germany celebrated for the production of oinamenta g ass. . 1 esia

and Bavaria share to an almost equal extent in the reputation which, in that department of art, has been

.mined by Bohemia. The products of Silesia were represented in the Great Exhibition by the works ot -ount

SehaftVotsch, of Schreiberschaw ; and those of Bavaria, by the Government glass-works, at Theresienthal. In

the last-named establishment the forms of the objects produced are frequently of great beauty, and the modern

artists of Munich have contributed designs both for their general form and decoration.

The celebrity of Germany for the production of ornamental glass for drinking-vessels and vases is of
considerable antiquity, and many specimens are preserved in the Royal Collection of Arts at Berlin by which
the progress of the manufacture may be satisfactorily traced. In the interesting Catalogue of that Museum,

A GROUP OP GLASS.

bv Dr. Franz Kinder* we find some remarks on the successive steps by which the art has reached its present
state of perfection" The author divides the series of specimens, which were for the most part executed in the
seventeenth century, into two distinct classes. The first of these, which was introduced at the commencement
and continued till the termination of that epoch, consists generally of long glass cylinders—some of even
colossal dimensions-which are painted in enamel colours, with a remarkably free handling. The decorations
of these monster glasses usually consist of armorial bearings, and occasionally of figures, the out mes being
indicated by sharp, dark lines. The vessels of the second of these classes appear to have been produced
only in the’ latter half of the seventeenth century. While the form of the glasses remains much the same
in the cylinder or upper part, the lower portion is quite different. Instead of the long and spreading foot
common in the goblets of the first style, those of the second are supported on three little glass balls. The
paintings are more cleverly and tastefully finished; a very slight portion of colour only is introduced, and the
principal part of the pattern is touched with an agreeable dark brown sepia tint, occasionally heightened with
black. The most excellent artist in this branch of design was the celebrated Johann Schafer, of Nuremberg,
who died in 1670. A series of admirably finished glasses executed by him is preserved in the Museum at
Berlin. Three of these are inscribed with the painter’s name. On one of them he lias executed a landscape
and a large coat-of-arms; on another, a tournament of knights in antique costume; and a third, which is
painted in one colour only, gives a representation, in excellent drawing, of “ Daniel in the Lions Den. Johann
Kcyle and Hermann Benchert are also names which appear on similar glasses, executed respectively in 1675
and 1077. There can be no doubt that this style of ornament was adopted in imitation oi the objects which
were supplied from the manufactories at Venice to all parts ot Furope, and which foimed a consideiable

branch of commerce in the latter part of the sixteenth century.

About the year 1700 this method of painting on glass was abandoned, and in the places where it had
been carried to perfection a system of ornamenting glass by cutting was introduced. This style was an
imitation of the works in crystal and other materials, which, through the skill ol A alciio A incentini, had been
added to the ducal collection of gems at Florence. These old cut-glasses are decorated with mythological
figures, genii bearing fruit, and hunting and hawking scenes. Few' of them exhibit much artistic ability, but
they are all laborious and skilful specimens of handicraft. As a variety ot this style may be mentioned the
beautiful ruby glasses w hich w'ere produced under the direction and through the skill of the celebrated chemist,
Kunkel, at Potsdam.

The art of glass-cutting which w r as thus carried to perfection in Germany, has maintained itself in that
country with undiminished success to the present time.

u Bcselimbttng ilur in tier Kunigl. K.un$tkamner zii Berlin, vor Lamlenen Kunst.saumilung,'’ 8vo. 1838.

IM A. I I 3'").

• ih , r.m: n • it t

* , ' ,1 ‘OtREX T

• >K>RO i r h

FOUNTAIN IN IRON, BY ANDRE OF PARIS.

I 0 N U U N PANTED AWOPEBL SKID Ffct>» A*“|»52 hv

v * son LiTMnohAPHF v& rr,TMf i^uefn

PLATE XXXIX.

FOUNTAIN IN III ON,

BY ANH[!E OF PARIS.

This elegant object formed a conspicuous ornament in the last French Exposition, and attracted no less
admiration in the Great Exhibition of all Nations. To both of these collections M. Andre contributed also
many other productions, remarkable at once for good design, excellent modelling, and singularly clean casting.

Fortunately, the Reports on the successive Exhibitions of French Industry have preserved an interesting
series of facts in relation to those who took part in them; and it is from that of the year 184-1 that
w-e have gleaned many of the following particulars of the career of this higlily-succcssful manufactui ei.

M. Andre’s progress may be divided into two distinct periods, lie commenced business as contractor
for the supply of pipes to the town of Paris. Possessing no establishments of his own, he piocuied the
execution of them by working sub-contractors in the furnaces of Champagne. Although at that time
unacquainted with the details of the founders’ art, he was enabled, by the exercise of activity and intelligence,
to introduce the best system of moulding, which, besides ensuring perfect execution, led to great economy of
production. M. Andre was thus enabled to effect a reduction of price, which compelled his competitors to
adopt his improved system. Thus, by his example, a remarkable service was rendered to foundries which
had previously possessed only imperfect and costly processes. A still greater benefit was conferred on
purchasers, since it enabled them to procure finely-moulded iron castings on terms far lower than those to
which they had been previously accustomed.

Subsequently, in 1835, M. Andre established his extensive iron-works in the Val d’Osne. lie has there
displayed all the resources of his industrial capacity, and his foundry has acquired very great reputation;
more especially since the year 1841. Undeterred by any consideration of expense, M. Andre introduced
into his works every improvement of which the value had been tested by experience. lie set the example
in Champagne of economising heat, which would otherwise have been lost, and of which he availed himself
to procure a supply of motive power, to heat air, and to dry his moulds; and he may indeed be considered

as occupying the first rank among the iron-founders of Champagne.

When M. Andre began to produce fancy castings, balcony railings cost, at Paris, one franc the kilogramme;

and pipes, forty-five centimes. In 1844 the former had fallen to forty or fifty centimes, and the latter to
twenty-six or twenty-seven; a result which is mainly to be ascribed to his exertions. It is frequently the
case, in extending a market and reducing the price of a commodity, that the increased consumption leads to
a deterioration of the article produced; but it has not been so with the works of M. Andre. By allying
himself to the most skilful designers and the best modellers of the French metropolis, he has evinced, in the
prosperity of his career, how valuable good taste may become as a commercial commodity. Fully appreciating
the advantages of education, he has attached to his establishment in the Val d’Osne a gratuitous school, in
which he provides the best instruction for his apprentices; and a savings’-bank and benefit society also form
part of his establishment. Upwards of two hundred workmen are constantly employed in his atelier, and
in busy times his manufactory may be regarded as giving employment to at least double that number.

The productions of M. Andre obtained for him a prize medal in silver in the Parisian Exhibition of 1889,

FOUNTAIN IN IRON.

and a gold medal in that of 1844; whilst, in the Exhibition of 1849, he received a confirmation of his
previous honours. He has also been awarded a Council medal by the Jurors of the Great Exhibition of 1851.

Whilst there is much that is highly creditable in the design and execution of the fountain now engraved,
it may still be remarked that, in common with most other works in metal of the present day, its ornaments
are deficient in those peculiarities of style proper to the material. This defect probably arises from the
circumstance that the patterns for iron casting are made by wood-carvers; and thus we find that panels,
eminently suggestive of joinery, and foliage and fruits, which might appropriately decorate cabinet-work, too
frequently constitute the staple material of important designs carried out in iron. In the balcony railings and
open-work door-panels used in the modern street architecture of Paris, the principle of lightness is admirably
expressed; and even though painted in the most manifest stone-colour, the eye at once detects in them the
peculiarity of the material. In too many larger ornamental objects in cast-iron, forms which it is usual to
hew out of solid stone are directly imitated, in a manner which completely sets at defiance the associations
which properly belong to the material.

Our limits preclude us from entering in detail into the history of the various improvements that have taken place
in iron-casting in France. It may be sufficient to state, that they have been carried on nearly simultaneously
and identically with those which have been introduced so rapidly and with such singular success in this
country, and to which we have adverted in our notice of the works of the Coalbrookdale Company (Plate NIX.).
We may, however, advert to the remarkable developement of cast-iron as a decorative material, which has
taken place in Paris since the year 1818.

This progress is mainly to be attributed to the exertions of M. Calla, who, on his return from a tour
in England in that year, added to his former works in Paris an iron-foundry, which speedily took a prominent
position, and exercised a great influence over the iron trade of France. It was M. Calla who first executed
iron ornaments on a large scale for public and private edifices : and by combining good taste with admirable
execution he was enabled to overcome the prejudice which had existed against that material, and to introduce
it in many positions in which bronze alone had been previously employed. Among the principal of these
may be mentioned a number of works executed for the Palais Royal, the Tuileries, and the Chateau of
Randan; as well as many objects, both of construction and decoration, for the Pantheon, the Church of the
Madeleine, and those of Notre Dame de Lorettc and St. Vincent de Paul. Ilis admirable execution of the
colossal statues which decorate the beautiful fountain in the Place de Richelieu attests at once his skill as a
founder and the applicability of the material to such monuments ; which, in fact, require but very slight atten¬
tion for the purpose of preventing oxidation, to ensure for them a durability scarcely less lasting than that
of bronze.

PLATE 40

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PLATE XL.

A GROUP OF CRYSTAL VASES AND INDIAN JEWELLERY.

The most cursory examination of the contributions from the Indian Peninsula to the Great Exhibition
could not fail to convey an impression of the great superiority, in point of design, which the objects from its
northern districts displayed over those from its southern. As the arrangements of colour, and the adaptations of
the forms of flowers and foliage, were perceived to be most admirable in Cashmere, so it became apparent that
the treatment of form and decoration exhibited its highest qualities in Lahore and the Punjaub generally.

It would be difficult to prove more conclusively the excellence of the productions of Northern India than
by the very beautiful crystal vessels which form such conspicuous objects in the group we have now engraved.
In these beautiful works we may at once admire the simplicity of the main or bounding lines, the refinement
of the ornament employed to decorate them, and the exquisite workmanship which has been devoted to its
application.

That constant wonder which arises from contrasting the admirable and elaborate results attained in Indian
manufactures with the simple means by which they were produced, cannot but be excited in an especial degree,
when we turn from a consideration of the perfect skill by which these vessels must have been wrought, to a
description of the primitive lapidary’s wheel by which their graceful forms have been elaborated. This con¬
trivance is described as follows in a passage from the u Bombay Times, quoted in the “Official Illustrated
and Descriptive Catalogue:”—“The wheel consists of a strong wooden platform, sixteen inches by six, and
three inches thick. In this are two strong wooden uprights ; between these is a wooden roller, eight inches
long and three in diameter, fastened into a head at the one end, and this works on an iron -spindle or axle
at each end. On the one end the axle is screwed and fitted with a nut, by which the cutting or grinding
wheel can be made fast. The lap-wheels consist of two circular discs 01 cakes of lac, with giound koiund,

coarse or fine according to the work; of a copper disc for polishing the very hard, and a wooden one foi

finishing the work of the softer description of stone. These are spun backwards and forwards by a bow,
the string of which passes round the roller. The lapidary sits on his hams, steadying the wheel with his
foot, and holding on the stone with his left hand while he works the bow with his right.

For the execution of works upon a larger scale, it appears probable that the Hindoo workmen have
availed themselves only of a small steel chisel and an iron mallet; and by means of these rude instiuments
their most elaborate rock-cut carvings have been executed, and the highest polish given to some of the haidest

substances in which their sculptures are produced. Dr. Kennedy, who is quoted by Dr. Hoyle in the

“ Illustrated Catalogue,” remarks that “with such simple instruments they formed, fashioned, and scraped the
granite rock which forms the tremendous fortress of Dowlatabad, and excavated the wonderful caverns of
Ellora; for it seems by no means probable that the Hindoo stone-cutters ever worked with any other tools.

The various objects we have grouped together furnish some slight indication of the passion indulged in by
the native princes of India for articles of the most precious and costly description. Not only every sovereign,
but almost every petty prince, retains among his dependants many workmen whose lives are spent in ministering
to this aristocratic rage for jewellery. It may readily be imagined, from the valuable nature of the materials with

GROUP OF CRYSTAL VASES AND INDIAN JEWELLER!.

which he is called upon to deal, that the goldsmith becomes an important ofhcer m every household, anc we
are told in Dr. Buchanan’s interesting notices of the native industrial classes, that “gold and sdve.souths a,e
called „ and the forms a regular part of the monarch’s establishment. Ihs ofhee « hereditary ;

and he weighs the crops when a division takes place between the landlord and tenant, or when o r. o
these sells to the merchant. By orders of the police, the goldsmiths always work at home, but are watched
bv their employers to see that they do not adulterate the metals. The price for working sdver is from
one-sixteenth to' one-fourth of the metal, according to the nature of the work. For working gold the price
s from one-fourth to one rupee of silver for every rupee’s weight of gold. The Mmamorussa give various
namental colours to the precious metals. A great many of the gold and silversmiths cannot give their
J ork any polish ; but one man in Patna, called a sonhari, lives by polishing their coarse work, and two
other houses, called jehgurs, live by polishing a kind of bracelet worn round the thick part of the arm,

which is called bazu, is very much in fashion and is always polished.

It is exceedingly interesting to trace the gradations by which this taste foi display descends fiom the

prince to the peasant. Each state and condition of society is distinctly marked, almost as much by the
variety in quantity and quality of the jewels which decorate the females as by the rigid laws of caste. . In
the minute and detailed estimates made by Dr. Buchanan of the exact amount of property belonging to families
in various classes of native society, we find a detailed estimate of the value of the personal ornaments usually

possessed by the individuals belonging to each.

The general good taste which characterises the richer of these objects has been well remarked on by
Dr. Hoyle. “There is,” he observes, “great elegance in the silver service inlaid with mosaic from Cashmere.
The same elegance of form is seen in the rose-water sprinklers, or goolabas, which are employed to sprinkle
rose-water over departing visitors. Much of the jewellery, though rich and handsome, is peculiar, because the
taste of the natives and the modes of wearing it differ from those of Europeans. A great \aiiety as well of
jewelled boxes have been sent by the Maha Rajahs of Nepal and Cashmere, and by the Rajahs of Kajpootana
and of Cutcli. The gold and silver girdles of Vizianagrum are as perfect in workmanship as the gold chain
of Trichinopoly is elegant. Dacca is one of the places celebrated for its silver filagree work; Cuttoek and
Agra are others ; from all of which specimens have been sent. The articles usually made are bracelets, ear¬
rings, brooches, and chains, also groups of lowers, attardans, and small boxes; of all of which beautiful
specimens have been sent. Mr. Taylor says the design best adapted ior displaying the delicate woik of
filagree is that of a leaf. It should be drawn on stout paper and of the exact size of the article intended to
be made. The apparatus used in the art is exceedingly simple, consisting merely of a few small crucibles, a
piece of bamboo for a blow-pipe, small hammers for flattening the wire, and sets of forceps for intertwisting it.

A perusal of the dry enumeration of the articles of jewellery and the precious metals contributed from
India to the Great Exhibition is sufficient to inflame the imagination with the most highly coloured visions of
Oriental splendour. From every part of that continent these specimens were most abundant, and although
peculiar fashions may exist in the different divisions of that vast continent, the affection for such objects
appears to be universally dominant.

It is in Cambay in particular that the lapidary’s art has been brought to perfection, and the fullest
information on the articles of that district may be found in the “Illustrated Catalogue,” in the interesting
remarks of Mr. Augustus Summers, senior apothecary of Cambay. Those remarks afford ample details as to
the materials employed and the organisation by which two thousand people are kept in constant work in
ministering to that passion for luxurious adornment, both of their persons and apartments, which, from the days
of Alexander to the present time, has been proverbial in the land of the far East.

PLATE 41

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PLATE XL1.

A GROUP OF CHURCH-PL ATE,

BY SKIDMORE OF COVENTRY.

Although Mr. Skidmore has only within a few years past manufactured objects similar to those repre¬
sented in this Plate, his attention has been for many years sedulously devoted to the forms and processes
which characterise those vestiges of the skill of our forefathers in the goldsmith’s art which have descende

to our own days.

Considering how closely Mr. Skidmore has studied the mode in which such objects were formerly fa mi-
cated, it must be regarded as especially satisfactory that his own compositions display considerable originality.

In his two-handled chalice, he has sought to revive the early traditions of the Church, departing from the
dogmatic laws which ordinary and comparatively modern usage has prescribed m the design of such o bjec s.

In the introduction of enamels and of nielli, as decorative adjuncts, he has been especially success u ; am i is
.ratifying to see these arts, which have been so long dormant, reproduced with all the beauty and perfection
of the best periods of their ancient popularity. All the objects which are introduced in our present illustiation
are suitable for Protestant use, and we cannot hut regard the two-handled chalice as pecu lai y appropxia e
for those churches in which large congregations are required to participate in the holy elements.

In subsequent notices we shall have frequent opportunities of returning to the subject o ancien
work, and may, therefore, at present confine our remarks to the peculiar forms and deeoiations o e

such as those we have now engraved. With regard to the archeology of the subject, we canno t o
than avail ourselves of the admirable guidance of Mr. Albert Way, whose interesting “notices of ancient
ornaments, and appliances of sacred use,”* convey the best possible information on the subject -I . Y
informs us that “in earlier times, whilst the communion of the faithful under both ones was jiunn ec,
^ bailee termed or —was of considerable capacity, and furnished not -frequently

with a handle on either side (-E. —), so that it might be raised with greater ease and security A
curious representation of such a chalice occurs amongst the embroideries of the Imperial dalmatic, y
riZZlip, preserved at St. Peter’s at Rome, as the <cappa di S. Leone III. ’ ^iaMy

not more ancient than the eleventh or twelfth century. It may likewise >e seen m '

, st DenU now preserved in the Bibliotheque Royale, where the miraculous appearance of the baviom a
of bt. Denis, now presence i attributed to the eleventh century.

“ Sl ' D “ S * "“‘Tf r 7i, llil rives, With MM instructions

rrr ihrication of the greater and lesser chalice, a chapter on fashioning the auric, a , or « o such
vessels a term by which the side-handles appear to he designated. These large cha ices uinisie wi

handle’s, were occasionally suspended in churches, with corome and TchU a.M other

Agnelli calicos appensorii; they may be seen m the illuminations o ^ pkce of tlic

Tn mnnv oases the calicos ansati appear to have been used as leceptac

“ or ,;7of “ cent time,; being ill Lted, on — of Mb W of

administration A io.ee cl.alice, with two handles, which could not be easily tawed by a man, was i>tes t

‘,7. of Mayence Ca.hcdwd, The fashion of the chalice i„ primitive ages was, probably, of

* “ Archaeological Journal,'” vol. lii. p- 129.

A GROUP OF CHURCH-PLATE.

most simple kind. The silver chalice, formerly exhibited to pilgrims at Jerusalem as the cup used by our
Saviour at the Last Supper, was formed, as described by Bede, with two handles; and, although the antiquity
of the tradition may be questionable, it is not improbable that in many instances the shape of the calk ansatus
may have been assimilated to such a revered model. In later times, a plain cup was used, somewhat more
elevated in its proportions, fashioned with a knop, or pomellum, beneath the bowl, whereby it might be securely
held, and it was occasionally inscribed or marked by some appropriate symbol. Subsequently the bowl was
made of smaller proportions, the administration of the wine to the laity being forbidden, and, as a precaution
against the risk of its being overturned, the foot was made very wide, with indentations, intended, according
to l)e Vert, to keep the chalice steady when it was laid to drain on the paten after celebration, in accordance
with ancient usag-e. The knop and foot were decorated in the most sumptuous manner, the bowl being
usually quite plain, nielli, enamels, gems, and other precious objects, were incrusted amongst the elaborately-
chased or graven ornaments of the lower parts ot the chalice.’

Unfortunately, from the indiscriminate zeal of the Puritanic movement, and the carelessness, and even
cupidity, of those whose duty it Avas, in past ages, to guard the sacred treasures committed to their charge,
nearly every vestige of the ordinary church-plate, as used in this country, has passed aAvay. In some feAv
parish churches, hoAvever, ancient chalices may yet be found, and many are preserved in the old Catholic
families of the land. From the practice which existed of burying with every ministering priest a model of his
chalice, types of the peculiar English forms of the plainer description of these vessels are not rare; but when
Ave endeavour to acquire any information concerning the richer and more elaborate specimens, it is only from
ancient inventories, and similar documents, that Ave can glean any authentic particulars. An extract from tAvo
of these descriptions Avill furnish some indication of their minute detail, and of the splendour of the objects
they describe. Dugdale, avIio presents us with a glowing picture of the glorious riches of old St. Paul’s, has
preserved the folloAving account of the precious chalices and patens Avhich belonged to the sacristy of that
cathedral.

“ From the inventory of old St. Paul’s Cathedral, London,— £ Calix de auro qui fuit Alardi Decani pon-
deris cum patena xxxa tS . x c1 . Et continet in pede vii lapides, et in patena est medietas ymaginis Salvatoris.
Item, calix de auro cum pede cocleato, et in patena manus benedicens cum stellulis in circuiter impressis
ponderis cum patena xli s . viih Item, calix de auro quern dedit Will, de Bunera ponderis cum patena conti-
nente manum benedictionis £x v s . v d . Item, calix de auro, qui fuit Ilenrici de Wengham Episcopi, continens
in pede circulos ayrnalatos, et circa pomellum sex perlas, et in patena Agnus Dei ponderis cum patina
xlviiR iiiR Item, calix argenteus deauratus, qui fuit, ut dicitur, Magistri Rogeri Capellani, cum flosculis in
pede levatis, et in patena plena Majestatis ponderis cum patena lii s . Item, calix argenteus Henrici de North-
amton deauratus, cum pede cocleato & scalopato et pincato ponderis cum patena IV”

1 01 the benefit ol those to a\ horn the monkish Latin may not be perfectly intelligible, AA'e add an extract
ot a similar nature from the inventory of Lincoln Minster :—“ Imprimis, a chalice of gold, with pearls and
divers precious stones in the foot and in the knot, Avitli a paten of the same, having graven, £ Ccena Domini,’
and the figure ot our Lord Avitli the tAvelve Apostles, Aveighing thirty-and-two ounces. Item, one great
chalice, silver and gilt, with the paten, Aveighing seventy-four ounces, of the gift of Lord William Wickham,
Bishop of M incliester, some time Archdeacon of Lincoln, having in the foot the Passion, the Resurrection of
our Lord, and the Salutation ot our Lady; and in the paten, the Coronation of our Lady, having a roll in
the circumference, Avntten, ‘ Memoriale Domini Willielmi Wickham.’ Item, a chalice, silver and gilt, Avith one
plain paten, chased in the toot, with a written knop, Avith one gilded spoon, containing a scripture, 4 Blessed
be God,’ having a scripture in the bottom, ‘Johannes Cynwith,’ weighing thirty-eight ounces and a quarter.
Item, a chalice, chased in the foot, silver and gilt, with a paten, graven with a lamb and four Evangelists,
weighing three-a,id-twenty ounces. Item, a chalice, silver and gilt, with an image of the crucifix in the foot,

with a paten, our Saviour sitting upon the rainbow, weighing --. Item, one chalice, silver and gilt,

laimg about the cup, ‘ Laudato Domino in Ecclesia Sanctorum,’ and on the foot, ‘ Totus mundus est Ecclesia,’
and on the paten, ‘ Enixa est Puerpera,’ &c„ of the gift of the Lord Charles Boothe, Bishop of Hereford.”

10111 d0CUments Slmilar t0 the ab °™ we might quote numerous descriptions of the ornamented fla

gous

. . f , . ,001 ' C0VerS 0nce m Constant use hl the cathedrals and other churches of England. But as the

s 5 o urn execution, and the ornaments that were made subservient to their enrichment, wee

sum ai to those of the ancient chalice, we should fatigue the reader, and exce
enumerating them

’e in general

exceed our necessary limits, by

PLATE XLII.

PAPER-HANGING,

■

HINCHLIFFE OF CHELSEA.

It is always gratifying to recognise in the productions of old-established firms the retention and ener¬
getic exercise of those powers by means of which their original reputation was obtained; and it is, therefore,
in the present instance eminently satisfactory to be enabled to observe, that the credit of the well-known
factory at Whitelands has been worthily sustained by the various specimens contributed from it to the Great
Exhibition. Among those specimens there were few which displayed more quiet and excellent taste, alike in
colour and in form, than the graceful design which forms the subject of our illustration, and, in the w'hole
Exhibition, there were few pieces of paper, as specimens of execution, more neatly and carefully printed.

As in the course of the present work we hope to be enabled to give several other notices of the art
of paper-staining, w r e shall confine our remarks, in the present instance, to a few observations on the mural
decorations of a simply textile nature, which have at various periods taken the place of paper-hangings in
this country, and which have now been almost entirely superseded by them. We shall see hereafter how
many of these, paper-hangings are frequently made to imitate, and how many suggestions for varied patterns,
textures, &c., they have afforded.

In spite of the thick walls built by our ancestors, we can scarcely doubt that draughts were abundant in
their unplastered buildings. To protect themselves from these piercing chills, hangings were introduced, which
covered the face of the wall, and w hich served at the same time for use and for ornament. While the weaver’s
art was a simple craft, these cloths were quite plain, and it was to relieve that too great simplicity that the
ladies of the olden times, of the days of the Ilenrys and the Edwards, whiled away the long evenings in
embroidering the ££ gestes” and exploits of their lords in the field or in the chase, and the ghostly incidents
of the “Aurea Legenda.” As the art of weaving improved in Flanders, and as the industrious Flemings settled
in this country and gradually extended their operations, these cloths became more elaborate in style, and the
skill of the embroideress was restricted to the execution of vestments and garments lay and cleiical. Giadually
the weavers gained the power of enriching their stuffs with patterns, heraldic and conventional, and at last the
fabrics which displayed the cognizances of the nobles’ woven “ semes,” and which served for the hangings of
their apartments, grew into the storied tapestry in which whole histories were skilfully wrought out, with all

the pomps and vanities of the most elaborate costume and accessories.

This tapestry or arras, as it was called from being first made at the town of Arras in Flanders, was hung
up by means of hooks fixed either at the ceiling or at a lower level, and servants, called “ upholders,”* were
specially appointed for their care,—more particularly during the removal oi the tapestries to accompany
their owmer when he journeyed from one residence to another. It is probable that heraldry was originally
employed in their decoration, since, in 1392, we find Richard of Arundel bequeathing to his wife the hangings
of his hall, described as made in London, of a blue colour, and having red roses and the arms of his sons
figured thereon. Wartonf mentions, that tapestries , containing a representation of Syr Guy’s famous fight

* Hence the term “ upholsterer

t “History of English Poetry.”

PLATE XL II.

PAPER-HANGING,

BY HINCHLIFFE OF CHELSEA

It is always gratifying to recognise in the productions of old-established firms the retention and ener¬
getic exercise of those powers by means of which their original reputation was obtained; and it is, therefore,
in the present instance eminently satisfactory to be enabled to observe, that the credit of the well-known
factory at Whitelands has been worthily sustained by the various specimens contributed from it to the Great
Exhibition. Among those specimens there were few which displayed more quiet and excellent taste, alike in
colour and in form, than the graceful design which forms the subject of our illustration, and, in the whole
Exhibition, there were few pieces of paper, as specimens of execution, more neatly and carefully printed.

In spite of the thick walls built by our ancestors, we can scarcely doubt that draughts were abundant in
their unplastered buildings. To protect themselves from these piercing chills, hangings were introduced, which
covered the face of the wall, and which served at the same time for use and for ornament. W liile the weaver’s
art was a simple craft, these cloths were quite plain, and it was to relieve that too great simplicity that the
ladies of the olden times, of the days of the Ilenrys and the Edwards, whiled away the long evenings in
embroidering the “gestes” and exploits of their lords in the field or in the chase, and the ghostly incidents
of the “ Aurea Legenda.” As the art of weaving improved in Flanders, and as the industrious Flemings settled
in this country and gradually extended their operations, these cloths became more elaboiate in style, and the
skill of the embroideress was restricted to the execution of vestments and garments la\ and cleiical. Giadutilly
the weavers gained the power of enriching their stuffs with patterns, heraldic and conventional, and at last the
fabrics which displayed the cognizances of the nobles’ woven “ semes,” and which served for the hangings of
their apartments, grew into the storied tapestry in which whole histories were skilfully wrought out, with all

the pomps and vanities of the most elaborate costume and accessories.

This tapestry or arras, as it was called from being first made at the town of Arras in Flanders, was hung
up by means of hooks fixed either at the ceiling or at a lower level, and servants, called “upholders,”* were
specially appointed for their care,—more particularly during the removal of the tapestries to accompany
their owner when he journeyed from one residence to another. It is probable that heraldry was originally
employed in their decoration, since, in 1392, we find Richard of Arundel bequeathing to his wife the hangings
of his hall, described as made in London, of a blue colour, and having red roses and the arms of his sons
figured thereon. Wartonf mentions, that tapestries , containing a representation of Syr Guy’s famous fight

* Hence the term “upholsterer

))

t “History of English Poetry/’

PAPER-J 'I AN GIN G.

the dtegon i» N.«h»were i„ «—» « «"** ». ■>»

list of the subjects noted on the tspestribs of the v.riou, pdttee. W»»«»>S to lie,try MU. H* • ■' « »

very full descriptions of hangings in the extremely interesting inventory ol Henry \ II., now e^mg m ic
Record Office. Hunt, in his “ Exemplars of Tudor Architecture,” remarks that, • 01 the historical and
fabulous subjects represented on these bangings, the siege of Troy, the story of Hercules and the parable of
the Prodigal Son, seem to have been the favourites, as they are the most general. 1 arke work (land¬
scape) and heraldry particularly, held high places in the estimation of the “ devysors ” of bygone times; and
<‘i„ 1503 Katherine, Lady Hastings, disposed by will of «counterfeit arras with my lord’s armes, counterfeit
arras with the imagery of women, alsoe pieces I have of blew and better blew with my lord’s armes; and

als0 pieces of hangings of verd that now hang in my chamber and the parlour.’ The latter were probably

hangings of rich silk in one colour, or, in fact, flowered damask.”

With regard to their value he adds, “ Some notion of the prices of hangings may lie collected from a

letter of Gilbert Talbot’s to his father, the Earl of Shrewsbury, dated 1570,* wherein he says, ‘1 have
seen many fayre hangynges, yo r L. may have of all prycesse, eyther iis. a styckf or vii grotes, iiis. ivs.

vs. or vis, the styck, eaven as yo r L. will bestow; but there is of vs. the stycke that is very fayre; but

unless yo r L. send upp a measure of what deptlie and bredthe you wolde have them, suerly they will not
be to yo r L.’s lykynge; for moste of them are very shallow, and I have yet seene none that I thynke depe
inousrhe for a great chamber, but for lodgynges.'”

The materials latterly used in the superior description of this furniture were of the most costly kinds.
Old inventories frequently mention cloths of gold and of silver, and embroidery, and a cloth made of a
mixture of silk and gold called U baiulekin.”j

Holinshed speaks of this in his description of the palace built outside the town ol Guin.es, on the
occasion of the tournay of the Field of the Cloth of Gold,—“Beside rich and marvellous clothe of arras,

wrought of golde and silke, compassed of manie auncient storyes.” The room in which Henry \ III.

received Francis I. at Calais, in 1520, is described as hung with cloth of gold, decorated with pearls
and precious stones. And from Wolsey’s inventories, we learn that in his sumptuous apartments, the
gorgeous materials of the hangings were cloths of gold and silver and tapestries of pictorial subjects. Lord

Orford, in his description of the sale of the effects of Charles I., says,—“ One set of hangings relating to the

story of Abraham, in eight parts, at Hampton Court, was valued in the inventory at 8260/. ; and another in
ten parts, the history of Julius Cjcsar, was appraised at 5019/." Most of the figured tapestries were
importations, for we find in an act of Henry VIIL 1512 (4 Henry VIII. c. 6) as much as 4000 pieces of
tapestry, &c. mentioned incidentally as coming in one ship. At what time tapestry was first manufactured
in England, we have little satisfactory evidence; but Dallaway writes, “ It was certainly previous to the
year 1344, when a writ Avas issued (17 Edw. Tertii, m. 41) ‘ De inquirendo de mystera Tapiciorum London/
Henry VIII. gave a patent to John Mustian to lie his arras-maker; and in the same reign, a private gen¬
tleman named Sheldon established at Bareheston, in Warwickshire, a manufactory in which some pieces
were made, consisting of maps of counties, some fragments of which are still preserved.”§ Dallaway also
fuimshes us a\ ith A full account ol the manufactory at iMortlake of Sir F. Crane, conducted by F.
Cleyne, in the reigns and under the especial patronage of Kings James and Charles I.”

lhe fiist mention of the impoitation of Gobelin tapestry is of that brought into this country by Charles
Brandon, duke of Suffolk, being a part of the dowry he received with Mary of France, sister of Henry VIII.

In oui next ai tide on the subject of paper-hangings, we shall endeavour to trace the steps which
immediately led to their introduction.

* Quoted in Lodge’s “ Illustrations.

1 St^ck is derived irons, the German word Stuck—a piece.

t a name derived by us from the purpose to which it was first applied, vis. to form the baldacchino, or canopy, placed over the high altar c

stuff M r °" ffl OCCaSi0 ” S ’ ttnd ,,ls ° 0ver thc thr0ncs of P riucc5 - Alberti tells us that haldacchiuo is ‘also the name of •“ Levant..,

di h’d//i,. C o°7 S r v ’ C “ ' by the LeVantiUCS “ ^ our ancestors “Baldacco.” G. Villani speaks of “Un riceo pah

di baldacchino di seta e di oro, messo sopra la sun persona.”

§ V alpole s “ Anecdotes,” edit, Dallaway.

PLATE XLII1.

METAL

BEDSTEAD,

BY WINFIELD

OF BIRMINGHAM.

Perhaps to the uninitiated there is no term which would be likely to convey a more false impression
than that which is generally employed to designate one of the most important branches of the staple commerce
of Birmingham. The “brass toy trade,” despite its nominal insignificance, has probably contributed more than
any other to the prosperity of that busy town; and no slight activity and energy are required to enable the
principal firms in that branch of manufacture to send out, to the very ends of the earth, all that endless
variety of articles of furnishing application, in which brass figures as the most important fundamental material.
By the courtesy of the well-known firm at whose establishment the object we engrave was executed, and by
availing ourselves of the practical knowledge of the subject possessed and kindly placed at our disposal by
Mr. W. C. Aitken, by whom many interesting annotations were furnished to the Official Illustrated Catalogue,
we have acquired some information respecting the operations and processes of the Birmingham metal “ toy

trade,” upon which we proceed to offer the following remaiks.

It has been estimated that at the beginning of the eighteenth century the consumption of brass in

Birmingham amounted to about 100 tons annually, and it may be safely affirmed that it reaches 10,000 tons at
the present time. Upwards of 7000 individuals find employment in the various departments of the trade.

The Cambridge Street Works (at which the bedstead was executed which forms the subject of our
illustration) were originally commenced in 1820, upon a comparatively limited scale. So greatly have they
increased, however, since that period, that upwards of 600 workmen now ply their busy craft within the
limits of the factory. Of the above-mentioned number of workmen, 150 are engaged in the manufacture of
metal bedsteads; an equal number in the fabrication of the best quality of gas-fittings; and the remainder in
the production of stamped brass ornaments for upholstery furnishings, metal tubing, wire, and the partial pre¬
paration of some of the objects which are subsequently completed by smaller manufacturers. An idea of the
extent of its operations may be gathered from the fact, that 130 tons of copper and 45 tons of zinc are annually
consumed in the making of brass, and that upwards of 100 of the ordinary iron bedsteads are sent off every
week Many very important improvements in the construction of metallic bedsteads have been invented and
introduced in this establishment; among others, that of making the pillars which support the tester con¬
tinuous, instead of out of a number of small pieces. This arrangement has imparted to them a stability preMOU,.y
unattainable, owing to the great strain which leverage brought upon the metal collars employed to unite the

short lengths of tube required on the old system to make up each pillar. ^ ....

The bedstead of which our lithograph is a representation was made expressly for the Great Exhibition, am
possesses many pleasing details in the style of the French Renaissance. The cast scroll-work is harmonious
in its curves • the little Cupids are prettily introduced, and the general design is agreeable and con¬
sistent with the conventionalities proper to works in metal. In the lightness and tenuity of the parts
the length of the columnar proportions, and the general sharpness of the details, the character of the materia
Ins been well expressed; and we may notice this object as especially free from that uncomfortable bulk.ness
of form, which, although proper only to wood, is yet so frequently to be met with in modern metal-work
especially when applied to furniture. It was, however, as a specimen of workmanship of the best class that
this bedstead was to be especially admired. The perfection of the various plane faces, the fleshy texture of

A METAL BEDSTEAD.

the figures, the delicacy of the joints, the freedom of the chasing on the foliage, the truth of the mitres and
arrises, the rectangularity of the framing and fitting, the evenness of the casting throughout, and the rich
colour of the metal, all contributed to the successful realisation of a successful design.

On inquiring into the processes by which objects of this description are produced, we find that when
the design is drawn a model is made in wax, of which, when coated with lac varnish, to harden its

surface, and prevent the adhesion of the sand of which the mould is made, a cast is taken in lead. The

imperfections common to early impressions having been removed by the “ repairer,” with his small gravers

and chisels, a cast is taken in brass, which the “ chaser,” with his “ mats,” “ punches,” “ stipple tools,”

and “riffles,” speedily corrects and reduces to a perfect representation of what is required; and this com¬
pletes the permanent “ model ” or “ pattern,” from which thousands of facsimiles may be made. Simple
forms are easily moulded, and leave the sand freely, but where concavities or undercuttings are introduced,
much skill and patience are needed. To copy a purely spherical model, the mould requires to be of two halves
only,—but in complex portions, the mould is composed of many parts, and the time expended in making it
occupies several days. It is in the judicious discrimination as to the fewest number of pieces, and the

arrangement of the several “hanging cores,” that the evidence of ability on the part of the moulder is

chiefly shown. To make the particles of the sand which forms the mould more adhesive, it is pounded

in a mortar, and its facilities for receiving the impression of minute details are increased by dusting over

the surface with powdered loam and ground charcoal. In order to withdraw the original pattern, the several
parts of the sand mould are lifted out by means of small points of wire, and after their removal, the

pattei n is taken out and the cores are replaced,—provision being made, by what are termed “ gates,” for

the introduction of the fluid metal, which is melted in Stourbridge clay crucibles, in an air furnace with a clear
coke fire. The moulds being closed and held together by wood clamps, the crucible and its contents are
removed from the furnace, and the metal poured into the “gate” or aperture of the mould, in order to
till up the space left by the withdrawal of the pattern, and to produce an accurate copy of the original model.

Ihe surface of a brass casting just removed from its matrix presents an appearance and colour closely

lesembling copper, whilst any roughness or superfluous metal indicates imperfection in the mould, to remove
vshich, vshen the forms are simple, the file and the turning lathe will generally suffice. When a careful
degiee of finish is needed, the work requires to be “chased” up. Where the surface to be cleansed is of a
matted kind, the aid of acid is called in, by immersion in which a uniform brilliant or a dead-gold
appealance is seemed. It is in this particular that modern brass-foundery differs from that executed by the
skilful artisans of the middle ages, who produced a finished surface by friction, or by gilding through the
medium of the mercurial amalgam. In acid finish, attention must be paid to the entire removal of grease, and
a preliminary cleansing is absolutely necessary. For the final operation, the acid requires to be completely
neuti alised, otherwise the action will continue, and the surface be destroyed. The dead-gold appearance of
much of the modern brass-work was the result of a discovery which arose out of the accidental circumstance

of a piece of work having been left in the acid during the night. This hint was adopted, acted on, and
successfully produced the desired effect.

Ihe majoiity of the brass-work produced on the Continent is still gilt, but the gilding can be closely
imitated, if some little care is taken in the composition of the metal, and if friction with a “ scratch brush ”
lie applied after “ dipping.” The burnished portions in brass-finishing are produced by steel burnishers, a
little ox-gall being applied to prevent scratching. During this last process, the objects are kept wet from
tune to time by immersion in water and argol. After being “ dried out ” in box-wood saw-dust, they are
protected from oxydation by a coating of lacquer, composed of spirits of wine, and coloured with a vegetable
matter. The article to be lacquered is heated, and the lacquer applied with a camel-hair pencil.

In those objects produced from plates by pressure, the metal is prepared by being rolled into a thin
suet. Ihe dies are formed of cast-iron or steel, but more commonly of the latter material: into these dies
is cut or sunk the design to be copied in relief. The impressions are taken by means of a stamp-press, to the
a mg lammer of which a die, sunk in intaglio, technically called “a force,” is attached. Annealing follows

° W - 7 th i f0lCGS are 80 Changed as t0 graduall y increase in convexity, so that the highest relief
with castT' 11 T. may bC bl0Ught UP * The fillish a PP liecI is the same as that described in connexion
combination withY* ^ pl&m and coloured glass haye been introduced to a great extent, in

— * , 7' "" —" “* ° f F- rf cornice-end* and 0 „r,.i„.

-. to loci. th. improvement 1,.. been introduced, have been .old within the few years which have
elapsed since the taking out of Messrs. Winfield’s patent.

H M E RE

N T£

MAR

PLATE XLIV.

INDIAN SHAWL, EMBROIDERED ON CASHMERE.

As a specimen of gorgeous colour and elaborate execution, nothing can be imagined to surpass the
shawl which forms the subject of our illustration. Its scale of composition offers a striking contrast to
that of the scarf-end engraved in Plate XXVIII.; since, while the purpose of the designer of that object
appears to have been to so arrange his colours as to neutralise and lower one another, until the geneial
tone was brought to a rich brown tint, that of the artist who distributed the relative intensities of the tones
which make up the pattern now presented to our readers, was unquestionably to enhance the splendour
of each tint by vivid contrast, and to stimulate rather than to trailquillise the imagination of the beholder.
As the former of these patterns served to convey a good idea of the general tone and effect aimed at by the
weavers of Cashmere, so the latter may suffice to exhibit the more brilliant scale upon which the operations

of those who embroider the plain fabrics of the country are usually based.

In our present notice we propose to resume the subject of the shawl-manufacture of Cashmere, in con¬
tinuation of the remarks offered in illustration of Plate XXVIII., and in so doing shall derive our information

from the several authorities therein alluded to.

The merchants of the country are celebrated not only for the skill with which they fabricate the goods
in which they deal, but for the astuteness with which they dispose of their products. Mr. Yigne gives a most
amusing sketch of the ingenious blandishments they are in the habit of lavishing, with every semblance of
disinterested affection, upon those they conceive likely to become customers, and the unceremonious promptitude
with which the guest is got rid of the moment the bargain is concluded and the money paid.

Many of the rich merchants possess large factories, in which are crowded together as many as a hundred
looms and many hundred workpeople. “ The looms usually consist of a kind of framework, at which the
persons employed sit on a bench, in number two, three, or four. On plain shawls only two persons are
employed, and a long, narrow, heavy shuttle is used. Those of which the pattern is variegated are worked
with wooden needles; there being a separate needle for the threads of each colour. For the latter no shuttle
is required. When the warp is fixed in the loom, the nalcash, or pattern-drawer, and the overseer, who
determines the proportion of yarn of different colours to be employed, are brought together m consultation.
The first brings the drawing of the pattern in black and white; the overseer, having well considutd it, points

out the disposition of the colours, beginning at the foot ot the pattern, and calling out the colom and the

number of threads to which it is to extend, that by which it is to be followed, and so on in succession until

the whole pattern has been described. From his dictation, the tahm guru, 01 foiemail, "lites down tie ] 11
denial's in a kind of character or short-hand, and delivers a copy of the document to the weavers. le

workmen prepare the tujis, or needles, by arming each with coloured yarn of the weight of about four grains.
These needles, without eyes, are made of light, smooth wood, and have both their sharp ends slightly clianed,
to prevent their becoming rough or jagged through working. Under the superintendence ot the tarah guru,
the weavers knot the yarn of the tuji to the warp. The face or right side ot the cloth is placed next to
the .n-ound the work being carried on at the back or reverse, on which hang the needles in a row, and
differing in number from 400 to 1500 , according to the lightness or heaviness of the embroidery. ...
The doth of shawls is generally of two kinds; one plain, or of two threads and one tw,Heck or ol tour
threads .Shawls are twilled, and are commonly about twenty-four nails broad. lhey differ m then

INDIAN SHAWL, EMBROIDERED ON CASHMERE.

extent of field. Two persons are employed in weaving the cloth of this breadth. One throws the shuttle
from the edse as far as he can across the warp, which is usually about half-way; it is there seized by the

second weaver, who throws it onwards to the opposite edge, and then returns it to his companion, who,

in his turn, introducing his fingers into the warp, forwards the shuttle to the edge whence it started.”

4f y j oom ma y i 3e occupied with one extra-fine shawl above a year, while others may produce six or eight
in that time. Of the best and most noted sorts, not so much as a quarter of an inch is completed in one day
by three persons, which is the usual number employed. Shawls containing much work are made in separate
pieces at different shops. The wages of the head-workman are from six to eight pice per day. and those of
the common workmen from one to four pice. The value of the pice in Cashmere is about three halfpence.”

The shawls are made of various forms and sizes, and with borders adapted to different markets. These
borders, unless very narrow, are made separately, and joined to the body of the shawl by skilful sewing.
Ilugel states that some shawls of this description contain as many as fifteen pieces.

Vigne informs us, that whereas a pair of shawls in which the pattern is woven costs in Cashmere 700 or
800 rupees, those in which it is worked with the needle are so far inferior in estimation, that a pair of equally
good quality worked in the latter method may be obtained for 150 rupees.

When, the shawls are cut from the loom, they are carefully washed, to deprive them of the stiffness left

by the rice starch, in which the yarn was dipped, and to soften them generally. It is said that the peculiar

properties of the water of a canal adjoining the city in which this operation is performed, imparts their extra¬
ordinary softness to the shawls of Cashmere. The water is thrown upon them, and they are trodden by the feet
of the workmen, and then beaten against fiat stones and dried in the shade, as the heat of the sun would be
injurious to the colours. This process is repeated after an interval of ten days, and again a third time with
the white shawls; which are bleached in the sun between each washing. To the latter soap is sometimes
applied; but never to the coloured shawls, which would be injured by the alkali.

The principal mart for the sale of Cashmere shawls is Amritsir, in Lahore; but many merchants from
Calcutta and other large cities of Ilindostan visit Cashmere to make their purchases.

The highest price mentioned by Moorcroft for any fabric of this kind is £700; but a large proportion of
their great cost is caused by the duties exacted by the native governors of Cashmere, and the provinces through
which they are conveyed for sale, lliigel gives the following calculation of the price of a shawl selling
for £200 :—

Materials and dyeing . £30

Labour of twenty-four Artizans for twelve months . 80

ILity . 70

Charges of the establishment. 20

£200

An English paper, published at Delhi, furnishes Mr. McCulloch with the following particulars of the
cost, See. ot a pair of real shawls, which in Bombay might sell for about 900 rupees :—

Furrukabad Rupees.

Cost, of wool ... 22 8

Cleansing, spinning, and dyeing. 61 0

Weaver's wages .. 204 6

337 14

Duties exacted by local governments in Cashmere, and in the transit to and at Bombay 252 30
Carriage and insurance . o i i o

610 56

i hc Cashmere shawl-manufacture has greatly declined since the rule of the Mogul emperors, when the city
is said to have contained 30,000 looms. Under the Affghan kings that number was reduced to 18,000; and
Hamilton, whose Description of Ilindostan was published in 1820, states that at the time of his visit there
were about 10,000, each employing three men, and producing, on an average, five shawls in a year, making
a total of 80,000. It is believed that there are now (M‘Cullocli, 1844) not more than 0000 looms. Various
causes are assigned for this decrease, the principal being of a political nature; such as the oppressions and
exactions ot the Sikh governors of the province; the reduced prosperity of Turkey and Persia (to which
countiits >nan\ sliauls were exported); a diminution in the demand for them in Europe; and, finally, the
destruction of 13,000 weavers in a few years by cholera and famine.

f l

*■ «• *

PLATE XLV.

BY MARCH OF THEIERGARTENFELDE (NEAR CHARLOTTENBERG), PRUSSIA.

Berlin has now for some years past been celebrated throughout Europe for its productions in terra¬
cotta. The fountain here engraved was the principal evidence of Prussian skill in that branch of art contributed
to the Great Exhibition; and whilst it admirably illustrated the perfection of the manufacture, it displayed at
once a pleasing taste in composition, and great freedom and excellence in modelling. During the last fifteen
years the firm by which this object was produced lias continually advanced in excellence, and extended
the field of its operations from the production of stoves, small vases, and similar objects, to the most
important works of a decorative and architectural character. It has obtained especial celebrity for those
elegant hanging baskets, made to contain flowers, &c., which have been generally adopted as favourite
Christmas gifts by the middle classes of Berlin.

Terra-cotta, as its name imports, is simply baked clay; but considerable skill and care are required in
its composition, so that exactly the right amount of vitrification may be ensured. The principal material of
which it is composed is common potter’s clay, with which a certain quantity of broken earthenware is mixed.
Pounded flint is added, and a little sand to serve as a flux. These materials being finely kneaded together,
are moulded into the necessary forms, which are then placed in a close kiln; from which they issue converted,
from a soft plastic consistency, into a material as hard and as enduring as most natural stones. Some
experience is required in so adjusting the design, that the various portions of the object may retain their form
during the operation of cooling, upon their removal from the kiln. Unless the material be of a tolerably
equal thickness in all its parts, the more solid portions are very liable to draw away from the thinner parts,
which, if not causing fractures, will at least distort the general form, or, as the workmen phrase it, “throw
the whole into winding.”

The value of terra-cotta as a building material has been recognised from very early ages, and both by
the inhabitants of Greece and Etruria the manufacture was carried to great perfection. Throughout the north
and south of Italy we find many indications of its popularity, from the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries ; and
at Milan, particularly in the church of Sta. Maria delle Grazie, and in the Great Hospital, some admirable
specimens of its manipulation are to be met with. Luca della Robbia and his family, in the latter part of
the fifteenth and the whole of the sixteenth centuries, gave a great impulse to the employment of baked clay,
through the discovery of a method of coating the material with a stanniferous glaze, so as to render it completely
non-absorbent, and admirably adapted to endure the vicissitudes of climate; at the same time enhancing its
capabilities as a decorative material, by the addition of brilliant and imperishable colours.

In the north of Europe it can scarcely be regarded as having met with the same popularity; and the
form under which it was there employed partook rather of the nature of cut and moulded brick-work, than
what is generally understood as pure terra-cotta. Thus in the buildings of the middle ages, in certain districts
of Germany, much of the ornamental detail was executed in baked clay, though in so rough a manner as to
appear, in fact, rather the work of the brickmaker than of the modeller. The forms were rudely carved out
of lumps of prepared and half-dried clay of the same quality as that used for making the bricks, and the

FOUNTAIN IN TERRA-COTTA

mass so shaped was afterwards burnt in the common kiln ; and although, in most instances, the ornaments
are frequently repeated, yet it does not appear to have been the practice to make use of moulds to give form
to the clay, but each separate piece was cut out by hand, probably assisted by templates, similar to those
which are employed in mason’s work. This is tolerably evident from an inspection of ornaments which,
though similar in general form, yet show trifling differences in every example. The works thus produced exhibit,
generally speaking, no pretence either to delicacy of form or finish, and are never minute in character or in
the subdivision of their parts. The principal example^ are to be met with in the north-ea>t of Germany,
where a total absence of stone led to the employment of plastic material for the purposes of building and
decoration. The earliest specimens date from the year 1200, but it was during the fourteenth and the commence¬
ment of the fifteenth centuries that the most important works were executed. The towns of Hamburg and
Liibeck, and several now comparatively unimportant place- in the old Margraveate of Brandenburg, abound
with buildings of this period, in which the architectural detail is executed in this rude species of terra-cotta*

In the latter part of the fifteenth century, the old practice we have described was to a great extent
abandoned, and it was not until the commencement of the present century that the manufacture was
successfully revived. Although stoves have been for ages made up with pieces of glazed earthenware, through¬
out Germany, still this manufacture has only attained a high degree of perfection since the beginning of this
century; it is extensively carried on in various parts of Prussia, but it is in Berlin and the immediate
neighbourhood that the best specimens are produced. There appears to be little doubt that the success which
attended the efforts of those by whom these stoves were brought into the market, induced efforts to be made
to restore the use of terra-cotta for ornamental and architectural purposes, and the name of Schinkel is
intimately associated with the introduction of this material as a decorative adjunct to buildings generally.
To the influence of the classical taste of this great artist may, perhaps, be attributed much of the elegance
of outline, and the refined delicacy of detail, for which all the Berlin manufactures in various forms of burnt
clay are now so highly distinguished.

The elaborate architectural details, as well as the bas-reliefs, which enrich the exterior of the Bau-
Academie at Berlin, designed by Schinkel, are all executed in terra-cotta, and bear unmistakeable testimony of
his influence in promoting the rapid progress of the art That very great care was bestowed upon the*
execution of these works, we may infer from the fact, that even the plain bricks forming the outer face of
the walls of this building, are so highly finished as to approach more nearly to the quality of porcelain

than of brick, more particularly those forming some of the bands and stripes, which are glazed and tinted
of a delicate violet colour.

In subsequent notices we hope to enter more fully into the peculiarities of the style of Luca della
Robbia, and of the manufacture of terra-cotta as practised in this country.

# Au able paper, illustrated by a senes of original drawings, was read on the peculiar type of architecture of the “Mediaeval Brick Buildings in
the North-East of Germany and on the Coast of the Baltic,” by Charles Fowler, jun., at the Royal Institute of British Architects, on Feb. 18th, 1850.

tV‘

Pi. A,! t 4 6

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PLATE XLVI.

SILVER-PLATE,

BY GARRARl) OF LONDON.

As the design of the present work is to furnish models calculated to improve the public taste in matters
of ordinary as well as of extraordinary use, we have preferred to select for illustration some of the compara¬
tively minor objects exhibited by Messrs. Garrard, rather than any of their more costly and ambitious efforts
adapted for execution on rare and special occasions only.

If the quality of taste can but be insured in the manufacture of articles of general utility, it must necessarily
extend its influence over works of a more elaborate character. It may, therefore, be readily conceived, that the
perfect execution and refinement of detail which characterise the objects we have engraved pervaded, in nn eqvud
degree, the larger and more complicated works contributed from the establishment of Messrs. Garrard. It would
have been strange, indeed, if the productions of a house which for upwards of a century has enjoyed the
patronage of royalty, and of the most distinguished of our nobility, had not displayed the utmost perfection
of richness combined with beauty.

The works of Messrs. Garrard formed a conspicuous feature in the third Exhibition of British Manufactures,
held at the Society of Arts in the year 1849; and will, no doubt, be fresh in the memory of all who studied
those interesting displays—the immediate precursors of the Great Exhibition of All Nations. On that occasion the
establishment referred to contributed a splendid gold centre-piece, executed by command of Her Majesty, from
a design by His Royal Highness Prince Albert. In technical excellence that object could not well have been
surpassed: its finishing and putting together were perfect, and in one respect it excelled every other piece
of plate exhibited,—namely, in the delicacy of the contrast between the burnished and unburnished surfaces.
A soup-tureen, in the Renaissance style, which was executed for Mr. H. T. Hope, M.P., and exhibited on the
same occasion, furnished an admirable model for the form of such objects, and displayed an equal amount
of skilful workmanship, and, perhaps, even more taste and appropriateness, than the centre-piece to which

we have alluded.

The beauty and propriety of form displayed in the articles we have now engraved will convey a just idea
of the perfection to which the Messrs. Garrard have carried the manufacture ot plate suited to domestic uses.
To the celebrity of those gentlemen as gold and silversmiths may be added an equally high reputation as
jewellers; and it is due to them to observe, that the workmanship bestowed upon the setting ot the gems
which they exhibited was as faultless in its character as were the precious stones themselves.

As many of our readers may not be aware of the difficulties incident to the production ot objects such
as those at present under our notice, we proceed to offer a few remarks on the ordinary processes employed.
The design of a piece of plate of an elaborate description having been drawn, the modeller proceeds to embody
it in wax. finishing every portion of it with a degree of precision equal to that which is requisite for the
finished object. Assuming that the body of the work is to be formed in what is called repousse, or beaten-up
work, a sheet of silver is cut into the form of the object, when developed upon a plane surface, and rudely
beaten into a hollow, or dish form, by wooden mallets. The requisite degree of concavity having been
oiven to it by hammering, ornaments in basso or alto-relievo are obtained by applying the internal surface

SILVER-PLATE.

to an iron rod which is made to vibrate by the frequent blows of a hammer on the end of the iron farthest
removed from that in contact with the silver. The continued action of these vibrations, regulated by the
skill of the workman, gradually gives the requisite form to the ornament. The rough developement of minute
projections is obtained by more pointed irons of a similar description. In order to define more perfectly
the form of these projections, the silver vessel is filled with a composition of pitch and ashes; so that blows
with punches of various sizes may be applied to any part of its exterior, without injury to the general form.
When, by this counter-action, the relief of the ornament is modelled up, the finishing touches and fine edges

are given, by means of chasing with the grater. The pitch is melted out, and that portion of the piece

of plate is ready for the subsequent processes of cleaning, polishing, &c.

Where certain portions of the object require to lie cast, the moulder takes a mould in intaglio from the
original wax model. Into this mould he lays portions of sheet-clay, answering in substance to the desired
thickness of metal. By pouring in liquid plaster at the back of the clay, a core is obtained, on the hardening
of which the sheet-clay is removed, and melted wax is poured in between the two plaster-moulds to take its
place. The small piece of wax, thus cast, is made to serve as a pattern for the final casting in sand-moulds,
the silver bein<>- run into the two halves of the mould, so as to fill up the space originally occupied by
the wax which was removed to make way for the metal. When the requisite number of these small pieces
of silver are cast, and their edges trimmed up, they are neatly fitted one to anothei. Soldei is placed between
them, they are connected together by wires, and by the action of a gas blowpipe upon the solder-joints the

whole are united. The patience and dexterity required for forming an elaborate piece of work, consisting

frequently of from thirty to forty, or even more, of these small castings, may be readily conceived. As an
illustration of the extreme difficulty this subdivision of parts involves it may be noticed, that in the formation
of the great candelabrum exhibited by Messrs. Hunt and Roskill there were at one time no less than six
hundred fragments distributed throughout their workshops, the whole requiring to be adjusted and brought
together in the mariner described, so as to make up the whole object.

In order to abridge the labour consequent upon the formation of frequently recurring patterns, stamping,
by means of steel dies, is often resorted to. These dies, or forces, are engraved in intaglio, and brought down
with a heavy pressure upon sheets of metal placed beneath them, in a manner similar to that we have described
in our notice of Plate XLIII. as necessan for the formation of brass die-work. In open silver-work, similar
to that which forms the upper portion of the tazza we have engraved, the perforations are cut out by hand,
but in commoner work by means of steel dies prepared for the purpose.

When the article is completely put together, all the imperfections are removed, by riffles, and other tools.
Every part is carefully chased, so as to give the utmost precision to the ornaments, and variety of texture to
the different portions. The whole is then cleaned down and polished, by a succession of rapidly-revolving
brushes, in connexion with which various substances of a greater or less degree of fineness are successively
employed, until the scratches at first produced by the operation become imperceptible. In those parts in
which a dull finish is desired, the effect is obtained by the application of a small metallic brush; and where,
on the contrary, extreme brilliancy is required, that result is produced by rubbing the parts with burnishers
of steel or bloodstone. A white frosted appearance, or “ dead finish,” is obtained by covering parts of the
object with a coat of pulverised charcoal and saltpetre, or argol, bringing it to a red heat over a charcoal fire,
and finally quenching it in a pickle of sal-enixon.

The employment of dies has been carried to so great an extent, that many ordinary objects—such as
spoons, forks, Xc.—can be formed out of sheet-metal at a single blow.

SILVER-PLATE.

to an iron rod, which is made to vibrate by the frequent blows of a hammer on the end of the iron farthest
removed from that in contact with the silver. The continued action of these vibrations, regulated by the
skill of the workman, gradually gives the requisite form to the ornament. The rough developement of minute
projections is obtained by more pointed irons of a similar description. In order to define more perfectly
the form of these projections, the silver vessel is tilled with a composition of pitch and ashes; so that blows
with punches of various sizes may be applied to any part of its exterior, without injury to the general form.
When, by this counter-action, the relief of the ornament is modelled up, the finishing touches and fine edges

are given, by means of chasing with the graver. The pitch is melted out, and that portion of the piece

of plate is ready for the subsequent processes of cleaning, polishing, &e.

Where certain portions of the object require to be cast, the moulder takes a mould in intaglio from the
original wax model. Into this mould he lays portions of sheet-clay, answering in substance to the desired
thickness of metal. By pouring in liquid plaster at the back of the clay, a core is obtained, on the hardening
of which the sheet-clay is removed, and melted wax is poured in between the two plaster-moulds to take its
place. The small piece of wax, thus cast, is made to serve as a pattern for the final casting in sand-moulds,
the silver being run into the two halves of the mould, so as to fill up the space originally occupied by

the wax which was removed to make way for the metal. When the requisite number of these small pieces

of silver are cast, and their edges trimmed up, they are neatly fitted one to another. Solder is placed between
them, they are connected together by wires, and by the action of a gas blowpipe upon the solder-joints the
whole are united. The patience and dexterity required for forming an elaborate piece of work, consisting
frequently of from thirty to forty, or even more, of these small castings, may be readily conceived. As an
illustration of the extreme difficulty this subdivision of parts involves it may be noticed, that in the formation
of the great candelabrum exhibited by Messrs. Hunt and Roskill there were at one time no less than six
hundred fragments distributed throughout their workshops, the whole requiring to be adjusted and brought
together in the manner described, so as to make up the whole object.

In order to abridge the labour consequent upon the formation of frequently recurring patterns, stamping,
by means of steel dies, is often resorted to. These dies, or forces , are engraved in intaglio , and brought down
with a heavy pressure upon sheets of metal placed beneath them, in a manner similar to that we have described
in our notice of Plate XLIII. as necessary for the formation of brass die-work. In open silver-work, similar
to that which forms the upper portion of the tazza we have engraved, the perforations are cut out by hand,
but in commoner work by means of steel dies prepared for the purpose.

M hen the article is completely put together, all the imperfections are removed, by riffles, and other tools.
Every part is carefully chased, so as to give the utmost precision to the ornaments, and variety of texture to
the different portions. The whole is then cleaned down and polished, by a succession of rapidly-revolving
brushes, in connexion with which various substances of a greater or less degree of fineness are successively
employed, until the scratches at first produced by the operation become imperceptible. In those parts in
which a dull finish is desired, the effect is obtained by the application of a small metallic brush; and where,
on the contrary, extreme brilliancy is required, that result is produced by rubbing the parts with burnishers
of steel or bloodstone. A white frosted appearance, or ‘‘dead finish,” is obtained by covering parts of the
object with a coat of pulverised charcoal and saltpetre, or argol, bringing it to a red heat over a charcoal fire,
and finally quenching it in a pickle of sal-enixon.

The employment of dies has been carried to so great an extent, that many ordinary objects—such as
spoons, forks, &c—can be formed out of sheet-metal at a single blow.

H .F AFTER OUT

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DF ac L ! OF. - LE MOORS. LANCASH ' R

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* 6 >> K

«. A ••• "t £ 3 S

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PLATE XLVII.

BOOK - COVER,

BY FRENCH, OF BOLTON-LE-MOORS, LANCASHIRE.

Great as has been the improvement of late years in ecclesiastical architecture, an improvement scarcely
less marked has been effected in the forms and peculiarities of those accessories which are requisite for the
proper and decent performance of the rites and ceremonies of the Church.

While much of the theory of this judicious reform may be referred to those accomplished scholars whose
studies have been for many years concentrated upon the subject, its successful realisation in his own department
must be mainly ascribed to the gentleman who has produced the beautiful object which we now engrave.

While engaged, about fifteen years ago, in a line of business dissimilar from that to which he has
since devoted himself, Mr. French had his attention directed to the necessity for a supply of communion
linen, ornamented with more appropriate devices than the ordinary patterns of tablecloths, and other domestic
damasks. He accordingly had a few altar-cloths made, with suitable ornaments; and these, together with
corresponding napkins, were eagerly purchased by the clergy residing in the neighbourhood of Bolton. The
obvious propriety of the articles thus manufactured induced many inquiries from influential quarters, leading
to an increased and greatly-improved production; and Mr. French was induced to pursue, with considerable
zeal, the study of the subject under its antiquarian aspect. Some of the results of his researches he has given
to the world in a little volume, entitled, “ Hints on some of the minor Accessories to the Service of the Church,”—
a work which had a most extensive circulation, and led to orders of so important a character, that the authoi
gradually relinquished the business in which he had been previously engaged, and devoted himself to the
production of church fittings of every desciiption.

In addition to tlie volume to which we have alluded, Mr. French has published several tracts on subjects
connected with his productions ; and among them one of especial interest, on “ The Arrangement of Colours
in Ancient Decorative Art.” The views which are put forward in that brief essay are advanced with equal
enthusiasm and modesty, and agreeably testify the amount of observation and taste which the author brings
to bear upon the work in which he is engaged. We cannot better illustrate the principles upon which is
based the pleasing arrangement of tint which may be noticed in the accompanying engiaiing, than by q •'
the conclusions to which Mr. French has arrived“ Some years since,” he remarks, “I had an opportunity of
closely examining a number of illuminated manuscripts, of what I believe is allowed to be the best puiod of
English mediaeval art,—that of the first three Edwards. I was particularly struck with the uniform arrangement
of certain colours, and remarked that the practice of the illuminators was, 1. io sepaiate the prominent

colours_red, blue, green, purple, ruby, violet, &c._from each other, by spaces, or lines, of yellow, black, or whte.

2. To paint with brilliant colours, on grounds of yellow (frequently gold), white, or black ; or if the groum was
of any other colour, to use yellow, white, or black, only for the ornamentation. 3. To combine two or more
shades of red, or of blue, green, purple, &c., without the intervention of yellow, white, or black. 4. r lo place
yellow, white, or black together, or upon each other, without reference to the law which appears to have regulated
the arrangement of all other colours.” Although we may hesitate to subscribe to every conclusion of Mr. French
on the subject of colour, we must admit that his practice affords the happiest confirmation of the justice and
propriety of his theories; for, so far as we have been able to remark, the various patterns which he has been
called upon to design have been uniformly harmonious in colour. These have been all drawn by lnmself, or

by a pupil, whom he has trained for that purpose.

BOOK-COVER.

In a communication with which Mr. French has favoured us he observes, that although his won , m
extensive demand throughout England, and for the Episcopal Churches in Scotland, the most sumptuous spec,mens
are sent to the United States of America; and he adds, that the British colonies give commissions lor alta -

cloths of a richer description, and in a greater proportionate number, than the Church at home.

In the manufactory at Bolton, about eighty hands are constantly employed in embroidery, uphos cn,
makin"' robes, surplices, hassocks, &c; and eighty or one hundred more are unintermittingly engaged in other

localities, in weaving the necessary velvets, ^ ^cal execution in embroidery,

The beautiful book-cover we have engraved is a masteily . pccine

and was wrought upon a velvet ground, in a combination of applique and ordinary stitci-worc * ie c ose
„f the Exhibition it passed into the possession of one of the exhibitors, by whom it was offered to the Countess
Granville, as a token of respect for the private character of the Earl, and his public services m connexion

Few writers have done more to illustrate the practice of ancient needlework in this country than
Rev C II Hartshorne, whose contributions to the “Journal of the Archaeological Institute,” furnish most
copious information upon the subject.*' It would be unjust to the author of those able papers to attempt to
condense, in our necessarily limited space, the complete series of historical facts which he has collectec. e
prefer rather to borrow from the “ Ecclesiologist”+ a few practical remarks upon the subject of the embroidery
suitable for altar frontals and other ecclesiastical hangings. From that source we gather that the groundwork
of these decorations may be of velvet, of silk, or of a ground of gold diaper, which is worked by the needle:
but as these materials are not convenient for being worked upon, the embroidery itself is done on another
material, and then sewn on to the general groundwork. The material upon which embroidery can be best
worked is a stout linen, of very even make, soft, and sufficiently coarse to allow a thread of gold or silk to be
passed through the interstices when required. The linen ought to be made of pure flax, without any mixture
of cotton, because the cotton is likely to work through in small tufts, and is fluffy t° work upon; and because,
if mild be used, cotton is said to be hurtful to it, from some acid used in its bleaching. Before using, the linen
must be well washed in pure water, or boiled, to take out the dress. The linen is used doubled. The
materials with which embroidery is worked are gold thread called passing, and gold twist, floss silk, and a
kind of half-twisted silk called mitorse. Jewels and spangles may be added, if required. The gold thread must
be used doubled, in a needle, the threads being laid down on the work side by side ; the threads only passed
through the linen at the extremities to fasten them off. They are laid upon the linen, and fastened down at
intervals with silk. This method is called cushion-work, from couchcmt, because the threads lie on the
groundwork. This is the general way of working groundings, diapers, borders, &c. It is capable of great
variety, from the facility of following any pattern with continuous threads of gold. Rich back-grounds are
worked in diaper patterns, and when sewn with coloured silks present admirable effects of coloui. A licit
raised stitch in gold, resembling basket-work, is occasionally employed for borders, and is formed by sewing
down ''■old thread in alternate rows over packthread. It is difficult to procure good gold thread in this country,
and care must be taken to select silver-gilt, and not copper-gilt. In many respects, however, gold-coloured
silk is to be preferred to bullion embroidery. The most common stitch is the old-fashioned embroidery, or
loiw-and-short stitch. It is used for figures, parts of draperies, the under parts of flowers, &c. A very useful
stitch is formed of boss silk, laid down smooth and straight, and crossed over in squares or diamonds with a
thin silk. Every intersection of this reticulation of silk is tied down with silk or gold: the tie may be single
or double. This has the effect of fine quilting. In the choice of these materials, and the employment of
the various stitches, much must be left to the artist. A careful inspection of the ancient examples will afford
the best information as to the methods by which the most beautiful effects have been produced; and even
if the result of such studies should lead to no practical results, it will be impossible to examine such specimens
as the Fishmongers’ Pall, the Hereford and Ely Copes, and the elaborate specimens of needle-work preserved
by Mr. Bowden of Derbyshire, Mr. Hailstone of Bradford, and Mr. Wilson of Lincoln, without deriving much
valuable information respecting one of the most pleasing and universally-practised arts of the middle ages.

* See “ Archaeological Journal,” vol. i. p. 319. Mr. llartshorne’s remarks have been reprinted in a complete form, together with an interesting,
practical chapter by Mr. Paley, in a small and convenient volume, entitled, “ English Mediaeval Embroidery,” and published by Mr. Parker ol Oxford
in 181-8. See also the Countess of Milton’s “History of Needlework;” and Miss Lambert’s “Handbook of Needlework.”
j- Vol. iv. p. 97. (No. 3, May 1845.)

* i-tJ

PLATE. 48

INDIAN SCARF END EMBROIDERED AT DACCA ON WHITE MUSLIN

LONDON, PRINTED AND PUBLISHED MARCH 16'" 1852

BY DAY *• SON, LITHOGRAPHERS TO THE QUEEN

PLATE XLVIII.

INDIAN SCAUP END FROM DACCA,

EMBROIDERED ON WHITE MUSLIN.

Ir is gratifying to lecognise one of the most important results of the Great Exhibition, as an educational
agent, in the publication of numerous treatises, both scientific and popular, on the various branches of know¬
ledge which w ei e there for the first time collectively represented. Among these none more interesting in its
natuie, noi moie learned and complete in all its details, has yet appeared than “A Descriptive and Historical
Account of the Cotton Manufacture of Dacca, in Bengal, by a former resident of Dacca.”* This small volume
is the production of James Taylor, Esq., who, whilst in the medical service of the East India Company,
resided many years at Dacca, and who not only availed himself to the utmost of the extensive opportunities
for personal observation which he necessarily enjoyed, but also of the official records of the locality, in which
much interesting material for the illustration of the subjects had been already collected.

It is justly remarked in White’s treatise on Weaving, that in the ordinary, and even the best previous
notices of that art in India, the matters of the greatest importance, in a utilitarian point of view, are wholly lost
sight of. “ The adaptation of the tools to the varieties of the work, the skill manifested in the management
of the yarn, the size of the shuttle, the build of the lieddles, the depth of the shed, the tension of the web, the
length of the stretch, the state of the paste, and manner of using it in the process of dressing, are nowhere noticed.”
To supply this deficiency Mr. Taylor has most successfully laboured, and his work is so ample in its materials,
and so lucid and agreeable in its style, that, dismissing all other authorities, we may at once proceed to
condense from its pages the interesting information which bears upon the fabric under our consideration.

The province of Bengal was famous for the fineness of its muslins upwards of sixteen centuries ago,
and its celebrity in that respect has by no means diminished even to the present time. The locality most
renowned for this manufacture is the district of Dacca (in the eastern division of the province), which is
about 1960 square miles in extent, and in 1837 comprised a population of 530,000. Weaving is carried on
in almost every village, but the principal manufacturing stations ( minings ) where muslins are made, are the city
of Dacca,—the capital of the district,— Sunargong, Dumroy, Teetbadee, Junglebaree, and Bazetpore. The
metropolis is situated on the north bank of the Booreegunga, one of the channels through which the Brah¬
maputra discharges its waters into the Megna. Its population was computed in the year 1838 at 68,000, and
at present the number of weavers’ houses in the town is estimated at 750. It was described by Tavernier
in the seventeenth century as a town of great trade.

The cotton of which the fine Dacca muslins are made is grown in the district, and differs from the
common cotton-plant of Bengal in some particulars ; the most important being, that the staple of the cotton
is Iono-er much finer, and softer. The finest kind, which is called photee, and which has been cultivated from
time immemorial in the district, is grown only in certain localities situated along the banks of the Brahmaputra
and its branches, and the Megna. Its superiority has been attributed to the action of the sea, the water of
which, mixing as the tide rolls in with that of the rivers, which overflow their banks during three months
of the year, causes a deposition of sand and saline particles, and thus considerably improves and fertilises the soil.

* Published by John Mortimer, 141 Strand. 8vo. 1852.

,1 '• * N'r.R DLL - r i- 1 ' H

V, DICBY vVrATT. DiRr.X T

THE! -Lf. ASi.'HL s OF PUBLIC GARDLMS, A SFRIES OF BAS RELIEFS BY K DRAKF OF BFR1 IN

i soon. PR .NT 6.0 AND PUBLISHED AP«l| i V tas>S. 9v p *, v <$- SON, I ITS O C RAPHtR £ ro "»-:i ,M F.CN.

PLATE XLIX.

THE PLEASUB.ES OF PUBLIC GARDENS,

A SERIES (IF RELIEVOS BY DRAKE OF BERLIN.

These graceful compositions have been developed from the circular plinth which forms the pedestal of the
marble monument of Frederick William III. of Prussia, erected at Berlin. As contributed to the Great Exhibition
by Professor Drake, they were reduced to one-half the size of the original model. It would be difficult to

imagine any treatment of such a subject more agreeable and expressive than that which has been adopted

in this work of art, or any one better calculated to display the learning and dexterity of the sculptor. The
combination in the same composition of representations of infancy, childhood, adolescence, maturity, and old
age, involves a severe tax on the powers of the artist; and it is but just to admit, that in every detail very
remarkable success has been achieved. It would be difficult to have found among all the specimens of
sculpture displayed at the Exhibition any one more agreeably illustrating the dogma, that the appearance ot
beauty and simplicity in the imitation of Nature can only be attained by consummate Art. Every action, seemingly
so unconstrained, and full of the elasticity and naivete of youth, has been studied, and probably arranged and
rearranged many times, by the artist before the happy line is hit upon, which expresses all that individual
representation demands, and at the same time allies by pleasing contrast each figure with those immediately
connected together by the conditions of the story. Much that the world is apt to regard in works of art, as
the result of those happy accidents which are supposed to constantly occur to great genius, are produced

by a concentration of the faculties, frequently so intense as to prostrate the physical powers of the artist;

while that elaborate execution of accessories which strikes astonishment into the ignorant is accomplished
by the dexterous hand almost without an effort. It is as furnishing a model of study in composition, and
learned treatment of the human form in contrast, that the attention of the student requires to be most urgently
directed to Professor Drake’s beautiful pedestal; it would be superfluous to dwell on the happy incidents
which develope the expression of a scene in which all " from grate to gat, horn lit eh to serene,

aspect of Innocence and Jo,. We do not remember to bare ever met with compoe.t.one ,„U,
carrying out a sentiment of sylvan pleasures, and suggestive ol such lefi exiling associations.

Frederick Drake, . native of Pyimont, wa, educated in the «ftr of the immortal Ranch, a. Berlin.
He .oon became distinguished for his remarkable talent, and more especially for the facility an ic itaey m
u-hich hi. portrait, were executed, both in relief and in the round. Among those whose eternal form, it i.s
been hi. privilege to record, may be enumerated man, of the most distinguished ™» * »

Germany, .neb a. Meander ami William von Humboldt, Ranch. MM* «-<*•» »*

which commemorates the IM Merer, a. O.nabriiek, ha. ..reed for ... author a con.ider.hle

reputation in the department of monumental art. The graceful b,.-rel,ef winch .. engraved by Count
Raczynski,* repreenting « dgnre of Charity, exhibit, the ..me f.lieitou. treatment which character,.,, th,

object given in the lithograph.

* In his L J Art motlerne en Allemaguty vol. iii. p. A64.

the pleasures of public gardens.

Our artist at present occupies a professorial chair in the Academy of Fine Arts at Berlin, a position for

which his talents and acquisitions in evefy way eminently qualify him.

In offering a few remarks on the progress of German sculpture, we shall touch very lightly on that of

the earlier age”, since in most respects the processes of developement from century to century followed the
usual course of Gothic art in most of the other countries of Europe. Debased Roman in style, in its incipient
stages, it imbibed a peculiar hardness and rigidity in its Romanesque period of transition, though occasionally
attaining a really grand severity. In its earlier Gothic phase it was truly fine, simple, and earnest in senti¬
ment, although in its later stage it grew too florid,—expression degenerating into caricature, refinement into
attenuation, and easy, flowing lines of forms and draperies into unnatural and angular contortions. In
its Renaissance period Germany was peculiarly favoured, since in many of her sculptors productions
recurrence to antique types was happily blended with much of the old dramatic energy in composition and

intention which prevailed in the best periods of the Middle Ages.

Scarcely any monuments of German sculpture of a date prior to the eleventh centui\ ait known to exist,
though from soon after 1100 they abound. About the middle of the thirteenth centui \ the Gothic element
appeared to develope itself in sculpture, and may be recognised especially in the tombs which date from that
period. In all the old cities, in Cologne, Strasbourg, Magdeburg, Freiburg, Naumburg, Wurtzburg, Bamburg,
Augsburg, &c., the churches and cathedrals were most lavishly decorated with carvings in stone, metal, and
wood. It was, however, at Nuremberg that the great stride was made, and the foundation laid for that
excellence wdiich subsequently so eminently distinguished that city. In the middle of the fourteenth century
flourished Sebald Schonhofer, who executed the beautiful figures which decorate the porch of the well-known
“ Frauenkirclie,” and the yet better known “ Schone Brunnen,” in the last-named city.

In the sixteenth century the reputation of Nuremberg was fully sustained by Adam Kraft, whose
exquisite tabernacle in the church of St. Laurence has been a constant theme of admiration. Michael
Wohlgemuth and Veit Stoss worthily sustained the reputation of the school of Adam Kraft, but it was reserved
for Peter Yissehev to far excel them, and to carry to its utmost perfection the sculpture of the Renaissance
period. In the truly beautiful shrine of St. Sebald, in the church dedicated to that Saint in Nuremberg,
the most lofty conception, graceful fancy, and finished execution are united, and one of the masterpieces of
human design has been wrought into being.

After the death of Yisscher numerous artists essayed to equal his productions, but none succeeded, although
much prolific genius was constantly labouring for the rich merchants, more particularly of Augsburg. From
the commencement of the seventeenth century the pernicious taste of Bernini spread from Italy over the
Continent of Europe, and Germany did not escape its influence, beneath which Art dwindled to a comparative
nonentity. The continued wars and troubles which devastated the Continent retarded for awhile the rekindling
of the spent fire ; but at length the ancient spirit of the German nation revived, and from the commencement
of the present century her word of command in art, as it was of old in battle, has been only “ Vorwarts !”
Fired, no doubt, by the writings of Lessing, Winkelman, Goethe, Schiller, Schlegel, and many more, the
youth of Germany has laboured hard; and at Berlin, Munich, Dusseldorf, and Dresden, schools have arisen,
the admirable works emanating from which have redounded to the eternal honour of the present age. It is
impossible to cite the names of sculptors such as Rauch, Schwanthaler, Dannecker, Rietschel, Kiss, Drake,
and Wolff, without feeling that it is our good fortune to live in the same generation with some of the finest
masters of the art who have ever existed, and whose works are worthy of the high state of mental culture
universal at the present day in Bavaria, and in Northern Germany generally, but more especially in Prussia.

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PLATE L.

A CANDELABRUM,

✓

OF ROME.

The productions of this young sculptor exhibit many of the best characteristics of the Italian style of
modelling of the Cinque-cento period; and he has unquestionably attained a facility and delicacy of handling,
together with a breadth of style in the conventional treatment of foliage and architectural decorations, which
afford an admirable illustration of the style of art which we propose to trace historically in the present article.

It has been long desirable that the purity of composition and graceful variety which distinguish the
monuments of the great masters of decorative design in Italy should he more generally appreciated in this
country; and it is, therefore, to be esteemed a fortunate circumstance that Signor Trentanove has permanently
established himself in England.

Like every other phase of art characterised by extreme refinement, the progress of Cinque-cento sculpture
has been slow ; and it is through the labours of many generations of artists that we are enabled to trace its
progressive developement. From the stiff acanthi and other features of the rude carvings of the Lombaid
masters—such as those of San Michele and other churches at Lucca—an uninterrupted chain ot modifications
may be traced, until we realise the playful treatment ol conventional foliage 'which chaiacteiises the best
masters of Cinque-cento art. The successful efforts of those artists were, in fact, caiiied on but in put suit
of the light of classic art, of which the Lombard sculptures reflected the last fading rays.

For the earlier links of this chain we must refer our readers to Cicognara’s elaborate “ Storia della
Scultura,” and Seroux cUAgincourt’s “Ilistoire de PArt par ses Monumentsbut taking up the narrative from
the impulse given to the art in Italy by Nicola di Pisa, we may follow succinctly the steps which led to the

ultimate perfection of the style under the immortal Sansovino.

The commencement of the thirteenth century was distinguished by the birth of the great Pisan Reformer,
in whose various works we find the naivete of action of Greek and Lombard art struggling with aspirations
for the refinements of a more ideal style. In those of his son, Giovanni Pisano, much more of the Gothic
sentiment—that of a happy tranquillity, combined with extreme purity and tenderness—is to be recognised.
This awakening spirit of an art which, though Gothic in its details, bore stdl a powerful impress derived
from the atmosphere of classic tradition in which its authors lived, spread rapidly throughout Italy.

At Rome, about the year 1300, the family of the Cosmati embellished the churches of the capital with
many graceful specimens of ornamental carving,—principally in tombs, tabernacles, cibonu, ike. Somewhat
later, Massuccio flourished at Naples; and at Venice, Filippo Calendario, whose beautiful capitals and ornaments
of the old palace of the Doge have been the theme of admiration for every writer from Cicognara to Ruskm.

About the latter end of the fourteenth century a new spirit seems to have arisen, moie paiticulailj in
Tuscany. The Gothic style of sculpture, which in that district had found favour in the eyes of Giotto,
Orca-na Andrea Pisano, and other artists, almost entirely disappeared before the more direct imitation of the
antique,’which was mainly introduced by Jacopo della Quercia, the remains of whose extraordinary fountain
at Sienna bear all the characteristics of the purest style of Roman workmanship. Not content with imitating
classic sculpture Della Quercia-or, as lie was subsequently called, from his great work, Della Fonte-exhibited
in many of his productions a singular naivete in imitating “ the life.” Thus, in his exquisite monument of Illaria

A CANDELABRUM.

di Caretto at Lucca, several of the putt ini, or children, who bear the festoons which decorate the sides of the
tomb, display peculiarities of infantine distortion which unquestionably prove the artist’s direct imitation of
nature. The career of Della Quercia may be regarded as the turning point in the history of Italian ornamental
sculpture, as he was the first of the actual Cinque-centists,—that is to say, the artists whose works confer
so great a lustre upon the fifteenth century.

This distinguished sculptor was, however, far surpassed in grace, in dexterity, in the imitation of nature,
and in a happy mastery over ornamental combination, by Lorenzo Ghiberti, one of his immediate followers.
Donatello, again, imparted a life and vigour to the art, which, in spite of all their beauty, were often wanting
in the compositions of Ghiberti; and the qualities of both these artists were happily united in the person of
Lucca della Robbia, who, during his long life (which extended from 1400 to 1480), executed an infinity of
works, the ornamental details of which were carried out in a style of the freest and most graceful analogy
with the antique. In the person of Filippo Brunelleschi the talents of the sculptor and the architect were
combined. The former are sufficiently evinced by the excellence of the trial-piece in which he competed
with Ghiberti for the execution of the celebrated gates of San Giovanni Battista; and the latter by his mag¬
nificent cathedral of Santa Maria delle Fiore at Florence. This combination of architectural and sculpturesque
ability was, indeed, a distinguishing feature of the period. Figures, foliage, and conventional ornaments, were
so happily blended with mouldings and other structural forms, as to convey the idea that the whole sprang
to life in one perfect form in the mind of the artist by whom the work was executed.

A developement of taste coincident with that noticeable in Tuscany took place at Naples, Rome, Milan, and
Venice. At Naples, the torch that was lit by Massuceio was handed on by Andrea Ciccione, Bamboccio,
Monaco, and Amillo Fiore.

At Rome, the opulence of the princes, and the great works undertaken by the successive Pontiffs, attracted
to the Imperial City the highest ability procurable ; and hence it is that in the various palaces and churches
fragments of exquisite decorative sculpture are still to be met with. Bramante, Baldassare Peruzzi, and even
the great Raphael himself, did not disdain to design ornaments for carvers, of the purest taste and most exquisite
fancy. Of the perfection attained in this department of art by the last-named artist the celebrated wooden
stalls of the choir of San Pietro dei Casinensi at Perugia will long remain unquestionable evidence. The carrying
out of these carvings by Stefano di Bergamo does full justice to the admirable compositions of Raphael.

At Milan, the important works of the Duomo, and the Certosa at Pavia, created a truly remarkable school of
art; among the most celebrated masters of which may be noticed Fusina, Solari, Agrati, Amadeo, and Sacchi.
r Ihe sculptor’s talent had long been traditional in that vicinity, and there can be no doubt that these artists
embodied in the highest forms the lingering traditions of the maestri Comasclii, or Freemasons of Como;
from whose genius many of the most celebrated buildings of the Middle Ages derived their highest graces of
adornment. Of all the Lombard Cinque-centists, however, the highest admiration must be reserved for
Agostino Busti, bettei known as Lambaja, and his pupil Brambilla, whose exquisite works in arabesque at the
Certosa must ever remain marvels of execution.

At Venice, the first great names which call for notice are those of the Lombardi, through whose talents
that city was adorned with its most famous monuments. They were followed by Riccio, Bernardo, and
Dominieo di Mantua, and many other sculptors ; but their lesser glories are altogether eclipsed by those of
the great Sansovino. At Lucca, Matteo Civitale (born 1435, died 1501) fully maintained the reputation of
the period. Returning to Tuscany, we find, towards the close of the fifteenth century, the greatest perfection
of ornamental sculpture. The names of Mino da Fiesole—the greatest of the celebrated school of the
Fiesolani,— Benedetto da Majano, and Bernardo Rossellini, bring to our recollection the exquisite monuments
which abound in the churches of Florence and the other principal towns of the Grand Duchy. These artists
excelled alike in wood, in stone, and in marble; and their works have been surpassed in this style of art
only by those of two individuals. Of these, Andrea Contucei, better known as the elder Sansovino, was pre¬
eminent in his art; and it would appear impossible to carry ornamental modelling to greater perfection than
he has exhibited in the wonderful monuments which form the pride of the church of Santa Maria del Popolo
at Rome. Ilis pupil, Jacopo Tatti, who subsequently took his master’s name, may be regarded as his only
Dval. He shone no less as an architect than as a sculptor, and his genius is displayed alike in the Cornaro
^alace, the Library of Venice, and his wonderful bronze doors to the sacristy of St. Mark.

Aftei the death of this great master the art attained no farther progress.

PL AT F. 61

M D 1 G BV VV V AT 1

. D 1 R f X T

A GROUP

ENAMELS F

ROM THE

ROYAL MANI

ij FACTORY

Af SEVR

E S

LONDON

ED AND PUBLISHED

APRIL l*. T 1862

1 f) Ay S SON. LIT HOG 1

RA, PHLRS TO THI

f QUEEN

MORAb. I I

PLATE LI.

GROUP OF ENAMELS

FROM THE ROYAL MANUFACTORY AT SEVRES.

The success which has attended the revival in France ot the art of enamel, w as admit abl\ illustiated
in the Great Exhibition by the objects contributed from the Royal Manufactory of Sevres. At that establish¬
ment, all the most admirable processes of the Middle Ages have been successfully imitated, and the highest
appliances of modern science and art have been brought to bear in equalling, if not surpassing, the most
beautitul works ot Leonard tie Limousin, Lourtois, and oCuer ediPuiated uVLsks ol kW -A E. T^j

the chemical knowledge and industrial skill of the late M. Lambert, the practical department of the ait of
fabricating various vitrified pastes was enriched with many new combinations; but it has been 1 evened foi
M. Ebelman, and his coadjutors in the Royal Manufactory, to carry to perfection the improvements so introduced.

When we recall the general apathy to the productions of the Middle Ages which existed at the peiiod
of the Great French Revolution, and the rage which then obtained for works of classical antiquity, we
cannot but be proportionately struck by the efforts of M. Alexandre Lenoir to kindle the enthusiasm ot his
countrymen for the arts and monuments of their ancestors. In the rich collection of historical iclies which
M. Lenoir was enabled to bring together in the ancient convent of the Petits-Augustms, were included many
of the most magnificent specimens of Limoges enamel; particularly those with which the tomb of Diana of

Poictiers had been decorated.

At the beginning of the present century attention was especially called to monuments of this description,

by M. 'Willemin’s “ Monumens Frames inedits,” and the intelligent remarks of M. Potier, accompanying the

engravings. It is to M. Sommerard, however, that the French are indebted for the most copious, learned,

and enthusiastic illustration of these, as well as of many other arts of the Middle Ages. In the collection

commenced by that gentleman in the year 1807, and which is now deposited m the Hotel Clugnj, at an..,

numerous enamels, both of the earlier and later schools of Limoges, are exhibited gratuitously to evuy c ass

of the population. To the names of the above-mentioned « whose liberality and zeal have so greatly

enriched the industrial arts of their country, may be added those of M. Sauvageot, M. le Comte da Pom a es,

M. Debruge Dumesnil, the Due de Luynes, and the Prince Soltikoff ^ ^ ^ artizans

Instructed by the writings of the authors and by the s uc y whk . h has rarely been

of Sevres have acquired a facility and command of manipulation

rp ss d While the general forms of the objects upon which their skill is habitually exercised have been

derived from a careful study of the most beautiful specimens in the above museums, the precise arrangement

of those forms, and the details of the ornamentation, are both original and eminent j gtact u ■

The process by which the objects represented in the accompanying plate have been executed, consists n,
the formation of the article in thin copper. In flat objects the painting is executed on plates, which are
subsequently mounted so as to produce the coftVet, or other object desired. The surface of copper is m all
cases coated with a vitreous paste, in the composition of which calx ot lead, tin, and occasionally a i e
manganese form the principal ingredients. The covering thus applied is white, clear, extremely haul am
fusible only at a very high temperature. It is applied on both sides of the copper, m order to prevent the

GROUP OP ENAMELS.

distortion which would ensue from the contraction of the paste in cooling, if applied on one side only. On
the white around thus prepared for the reception of ornamental painting, the artist proceeds to float over, in
transparent enamel, whatever tints he pleases, care being taken that the metal oxides which form the colouring
matter are mixed with such frits as shall liquefy at a lower temperature than that which would suffice to
disturb the condition of affinity of the particles of the white enamel which forms the base. When gilding is
employed to heighten the effect, it is usually covered with a thin vitreous glaze, which perfectly protects it
from tarnishing, and imparts that extraordinary brilliancy which the decorations of many ancient enamels
have maintained to the present day.

The peculiar style, in imitation of which the objects we engrave have been executed, is that which was
practised by Jean Courtois, and other artists of his school; which immediately succeeded that of Leonard
de Limousin, the great reviver of the art in the middle of the sixteenth century.

In order to fully appreciate the characteristics of the above-mentioned schools, it will be necessary to
trace the progress of the art of enamelling from an early period; and as we contemplate pursuing the subject
in subsequent notices, we shall content ourselves in the present with describing only the earliest periods of
the art.

The archaeology of the subject has been admirably treated by MM. Texier, Maurice Ardent, Potier,
Labarte, Ferdinand Seres, Dussieux, Paul Lacroix, Du Sommerard, and other French writers, as well as by
Mr. Albert Way, Mr. George Isaacs, Mr. Franks, Mr. Henry Shaw, and Mr. W. II. Rogers. As the result
of their researches, we may assume that the practice of engraving cavities in copper, and filling them with
vitreous pastes, which were subsequently fused by the action of heat, was generally known to the Gauls,
and to the Celtic inhabitants of Britain and Ireland. This belief rests, in part, upon a remarkable passage
in Philostratus, who lived during the reign of Severus,—that is, in the earlier part of the third century.
This writer gives a vivid description of the chase, and mentions the horses employed in it as being decorated
with harness, enriched with gold and many colours: “ for,” he remarks, “ the barbarians of the regions of

the ocean are skilful, as it is said, in fusing colours upon heated brass, which become as hard as stone, and
render the ornament thus enriched durable.” The fact thus commemorated by the historian receives ample
corroboration in the curious relics which have been from time to time discovered in France and in the British
islands. Most of these are either personal ornaments—such as fibula, &c.—or apparently horse-trappings
fitt 5 ^* The pastes are usually opaque, the principal colours being red and yellow. The design
is generally of a barbaric character; and although one fragment in the possession of Mr. C. Roach Smith
displays unquestionable evidences of Roman design, that specimen must be regarded as almost unique.

Contemporary with the highest developement of the art of enamel among the “ barbarians of the
regions of the ocean,” a curious variety of the same art appears to have sprung into existence among the
Greeks, soon after the removal of the seat of empire to Byzantium. This is usually known as filagree, or
cloisonne enamel, and consisted of a thin plate of gold, on which small ribands of the purest gold were so
ananged, and secuied by soldei, as to follow the lines of a pattern previously traced upon the plate, and at
the same time to divide the whole surface into a number of compartments, or little cells. Various fragments

of coloured glass were then heated red-hot, and thrown into brazen vessels filled with water; and thus

partially pulverised, they were reduced in a mortar to a state of powder. With these coloured powders
the compartments formed by the filagree were filled up, and the work thus prepared was subjected, in a

“muffle” furnace, to the heat necessary to fuse once more the coloured glass. When the enamels had been

allowed to cool and harden, the whole was rubbed down and polished, as gems are; and the effects produced
by this delicate process were extremely elaborate and beautiful.

Many interesting specimens of cloisonne enamel still exist in this country; the most celebrated being
the well-known Alfred Jewel in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, and an exquisite little brooch in the
Hamilton collection of gems in the British Museum. But the most remarkable instance of this kind of work
is the celebi ated palliotto, or altar-frontal of St. Mark’s, Venice,—a work which was executed by the Greeks
of Byzantium tor the Doge Orseolo at the end of the tenth century.

In on. next notice on this subject we shall trace the developement of the art in France, and in the
otlici countiies ol Lurope, during tbe Middle A°'es.

.1 D iCB Y i— r ~ i oc ,

C IK MOROCCO AND ;iji i , r, -

R V n A 1 1" ^ Nl

PR'NTFD AND PUBLISHED APRU. IV IS 52, 5v DAY fe S C»

' L’THOORAPHERS TO

"* v- r i

PLATE LII.

BOOKBINDING AND INLAYING.

BY BATTEN OF CLAPHAM.

It may be safely affirmed, that the art of bookbinding in this country within the last fifty years has
never been surpassed by that of any other period in its history. The names of Herring, Lewis, Mack inlay,
Hayday, and many others, deserve to be cited in future ages along with those of Grolier, Padaloup, De Rome,
and Roger Payne ; and among the works in this department contributed to the Great Exhibition few were
more agreeable in design, or more admirable in workmanship, than those of Mr. Batten, a specimen of which

we now engrave.

As the subject of bookbinding possesses much historical and artistic interest, we propose to notice
successively the general nature of the operations it involves; the history and progress of the art; and such
particular kinds of bookbinding as modern ingenuity lias supplied as varieties from ordinary leather work.

The processes of binding maybe divided generally into three stages;—namely, “ making-up;” “covering;”
and “finishing,” or decorating. The sheets, as they leave the printers, having been folded by females, are
“ gathered ” into the succession necessary to form complete books. They are then collated, and subjected to
a “rolling press,” by passing through which they acquire the compactness necessary to a well-bound book.
The sheets are then sewn, by a thread passed successively though the middle of each sheet, to three or more
strong bands, running transversely across the back of the book. This operation is also performed by females,
with the aid of a simple apparatus called a “sewing-press.” The book is thus “made-up,” and ready tor
“ covering.” The case, or complete cover, consists of the boards . or stiffening substance for the sides, and the
leather, technically termed the cover , which, at the same time, envelopes the boards and forms the back.

After sewing, the back of the unbound book is glued, to render the cohesion of the sheets more per feet;
and by the skilful application of a hammer the binder gives a graceful convexity to the back, and fonns the
edo-es into grooves to receive the boards. The book being held in a cutting-press, the top and bottom edges
are cut perfectly smooth with a pointed knife, or plough. To produce upon the front, or foi e-edge, a
convexity corresponding with the curve of the back, it is necessary to render the lattei again tempoiaiily
flat. The front edges are then cut smooth, and the hack, resuming its rounded form, necessarily produces

the desired curvature in front.

The mill-boards for the sides being carefully cut to the proper size, they are attached to the book by
passing through them the ends of the bands to which the sheets were sewn. The next operation is that of
putting on the cover, whether of roan, calf, morocco, or russia leather; and m this the dexterity of the skilful
workman is displayed. The leather is cut sufficiently large to turn over the boards, and its edges are pared
thin to avoid any unsightly appearance when completed. It is pasted to the boards with the greatest nicety
and smoothness, and particular care is taken to turn in the corners neatly. In “half-bound” books, the backs
and corners only are covered with leather, and the main portion of the sides with marbled paper or cloth
The best kind of books are made to open with what is termed a “ hollow back; ” an ornamental “head-hand”
is added, and raised “ bands ” are formed by strips of cord glued across the back. The edges are then “ sprinkled,”
“ marbled,” or oilt. Without dwelling upon these matters of detail, we may proceed to notice briefly the
third stacr’e of bookbinding-that of “finishing” or decorating, in which the taste of the artist is called into

BOOKBINDING AND INLAYING.

requisition. The lettering, fillets, scrolls, arabesques, and other ornaments which constitute the external

decoration of books, are impressed upon the leather in the desired patterns by brass tools, which are
slightly heated to render the impression lasting. Fillets and running sprigs are engraved m relief upon
the edge or periphery of a brass “roll” and this being wheeled carefully over the surface of the book,
with the necessary pressure, leaves a corresponding indented pattern. In elaborately ornamented books many
hundreds of separate tools may be employed. Where the pattern is not gilt, the operation is called “ blind
tooling.” To apply the gold-leaf, it is necessary to prepare the leather with size and white of egg; the

<>-<)ld is lightly laid upon the surface, and the pressure of the tool causes it to adhere to the pattern, the
superfluous particles being rubbed off. The beautiful illuminated appearance shown in Mr. Batten’s elegant

specimen is produced by what is termed inlaying , which consists in attaching to the surface of the book

small pieces of differently-coloured leathers, which are pared extremely thin for the purpose.

Reserving for the present a notice of the cloth and embossed bindings which have lecently proved so
successful, we must now briefly allude to the history of ornamental bookbinding. The ecclesiastics of the
Middle Ages bestowed upon their exquisite illuminated manuscripts a corresponding splendoui of external
decoration. Carved oak and ivory were used for their covers, and these were elaborately ornamented with
gold, silver, and enamels, and frequently enriched with pearls, rubies, and other precious stones. As we shall
hereafter engrave a gorgeous book-cover, assimilating in its character to those of the Middle Ages, we shall
take another opportunity of describing their extraordinary magnificence.

Richly-coloured velvets, vellum, calf and morocco leather, were used for covers at an early period, but
bookbinding in the ordinary sense of the word, i.e. of a leather cover for a printed book, may be assumed to
date from the invention of printing. In an able essay by Mr. Joseph Cundail on “ Ornamental Art as applied

to Ancient and Modern Bookbinding,” read to the Society of Arts on the 10th of November, 184 7, the author

observes that “ there are many printed books still in good preservation that were bound in calf with oaken

boards at the end of the fifteenth and beginning of the sixteenth centuries. In England, the earliest binding

with ornament was about the time of Henry VII., when we find the royal arms, supported by two angels,
the heraldic badge of the double rose and pomegranate, the fleur-de-lis , the portcullis, the emblems of the
Evangelists, and small ornaments of grotesque animals.” In a statute of Richard III. (1483) it is expressly
recited, that there were then “a great number of the king’s subjects living by the craft and mystery of binding
of books, and well expert in the same.” About 1538 Grafton undertook to print the Great Bible, and for
that purpose brought from Paris not only printing-presses, type, and printers, but bookbinders also; and when
it is remembered that there were seven large editions in folio of the sacred volume within three years, it is
obvious that the binding of them would alone suffice to give importance to the art.

Mr. Cundail states, that the stamping of tools in gold appears to have been first introduced in this

country in the reign of Henry VIII.; and some beautiful rolls, probably from Holbein’s designs, were used,

as well on the sides as on the gilded edges of books still in existence. The sides of books of the period now

under our consideration were generally of oaken or beech-boards, covered with leather, and furnished with
metal bosses at the angles. They were sometimes embossed with figures of saints in niches, and occasionally
with foliage in the intervening compartments. Heraldry is occasionally introduced, and the designs display
considerable ingenuity. They generally cover the whole of the field; the division of the side into centre and
margin being of Italian origin.

With the reign of Elizabeth and her learned successor considerable luxury was introduced in bookbinding,
and many an old volume of that period still attests the skill of English binders. The Great Rebellion impeded
the progress of the art; but after the Restoration, renewed energy was infused into it. The fashions of the
Continent were then freely introduced, and imitations of the most celebrated Italian and French bindings were
executed with great dexterity. Lighter covers superseded the cumbrous wooden ones before used; gaily coloured
leathers were employed; gilding took the place of the simple relieved work of the ordinary monastic binding.
Contemporary with the formation of Sir Thomas Bodley’s and other celebrated libraries, a marked improvement
in the art was manifested; and the good preservation of those collections may be mainly attributed to the
care bestowed upon their binding.

It. is not, however, till we approach comparatively modern days that the names of the best workmen have
been preserved to us; and the earliest that we are enabled to cite as displaying any special taste is that of
Roger Payne. In our next article on the subject we shall notice the works of this celebrated bookbinder, and
complete our historical sketch ol the art both in this country and in France and Italy.

PLATE 53

AND^ C VE DA A i ^ A' •

( : s *« T

N Ft W 0 N 7 >' ft Y ; 0 H N B l .

A l 30 0 r< A E M PA NY

' N D \

• NOON ^ ^ N T c. , \N D ^ a t 0 * S ** ^ c o ?** **•*’ < j'*s ,p*. *^•-►- 3 '^ -r p y ^ ^ c • ^

PI,ATE 1,111.

ANDROMEDA,

A STATUE IN BRONZE, IIV JOHN BELT OF LONDON, CAST 111' THE COALBROOKDALE

Among the numerous British sculptors who contributed to the Great Exhibition, few manifested more
untiring industry or better taste than the author of the statue now engraved. It may be truly said, that the life
of an artist is best written in his works; and fortunately, if in no other respect, Mr. John Bell has furnished
us in his productions with ample materials for his biography. The varied nature of his works affords an
admirable picture of the versatile genius of their producer. bile such efforts as the "Eagle Slayer,” and
the statue of “ Falkland,” prove his lofty appreciation of the vigorous and the sublime, his well-known
“ Dorothea,” the “ Babes in the Wood,” and the figure which we now engrave, show that he leans also to
“ the soft side of the heart,” and possesses the happiest feeling for the graceful and the picturesque.

Mr. Bell’s practical efforts to introduce a higher style of design and modelling into the productions ot
the great manufacturing establishments of the country, have, in many cases, been crowned with very remarkable
success ; and if a collection could be made of the various objects over which his teeming imagination and skilful
hand have cast the witchery of beauty, they would alone suffice to form an exhibition of great interest and value.

It is fortunate for Mr. Bell that his efforts for the improvement of art-manufactures have been so
admirably seconded, by those to whom he has consigned the carrying out of his ideas. For instance, it would
be difficult to find a specimen of bronze-casting more ably executed, or more entirely tree from detects, than
the statue and its pedestal which we now present to our readers, and which represents one ot the faiomite
themes of imaginative art ;—the unfortunate, yet fortunate, Andromeda. M bile, therefore, a high meed ol
praise must be awarded to Mr. Bell for the talent he has displayed in this composition, we must at the
same time recognise the skill with which the processes of founding have been carried out by the C’oalbrook-

dale Company, and the dexterous manipulation of the chasers whom they employ.

In one respect the subject of our engraving offers a valuable suggestion, which it is desirable that the
artists of this country should generally appreciate. We allude to the congruity which exists between the
statue and its base. In the ornaments of the pedestal, not only the story itself, but it> instiuetne moial, aie
effectively told. The little Cupids who triumph over the Dolphins, recall the source from which the demigod
derived the strength and courage which enabled him to subdue the Minotaur; in whose destruction the poet
conveys only an expression of Love triumphing over difficulties and dangers. The introduction of the Medusa’s
head ' the shells, and other accessories, gracefully identify the pedestal with the statue it supports. I he
more common mode of carrying out the connexion which Mr. Bell has so ably realised, would have been
by the simple insertion, around the base of the pedestal, of bas-reliefs representing the actual incidents of
the legend; but in that case it would have been difficult to obtain the pyramidal line, which so well

leads up to the vertical pose of the figure. , , ,

Mr Bell’s productions exhibit in a striking degree the ordinary characteristics ot the English school ot

sculpture the forms of which appear to he governed rather by a tasteful selection from fine natural types,
than by a system of idealising, with a view to the elimination of an imaginary perfection of form. M bile,

ANDROMEDA, A STATUE IN BRONZE.

therefore, in English sculpture, the refinement of Greek art may be occasionally wanting, we are never chilled
by the presence^ of a perfection which we know does not exist in nature: and thus it is satisfactory to
observe that, although occasionally defective in their embodiments of ideal force and grandeur, our native
sculptors rarely fail to delight us by a sweetness and elegance of outline and modelling, which constitute the

great charm of their productions.

When we recur in memory to the great names by which English sculpture has been dignified, and
through whose influence its school has been formed, we perceive among them, even at the outset, the elements
of remarkable originality. The genius of Evelyn, tutored as it had been, by long residence in Italy, to a
fashionable admiration of the frittered graces of the school of Bernini, could yet recognise the freedom and talent
displayed in the earliest works of Grinling Gibbons. Although the scope of this artist s efforts was, to a great
extent, confined to works of a cabinet character, we still find so marked and independent a style in e\ei\ thing
which he touched, that, so far as we have been enabled to observe, there does not exist in any other country

a series of productions at all assimilating to those of Gibbons.

Through the influence of Cibber the gods and goddesses of Rome were imported into the stiff and stately
gardens of the middle and latter part of the seventeenth century. When, however, that artist emancipated
himself from the traditions of Lower Roman art, he manifested a genius and power of expression which has
rarely been surpassed. In his two celebrated figures of Madness and Melancholy, he evinced a power which
was never attained by his more skilful successor, Roubiliac. The latter, although perhaps seldom excelled in
handling the chisel, has a certain dramatic mannerism, which impairs the effect of his most ambitious composi-
tions. Thus, although some portions of his celebrated monument to Mrs. Nightingale exhibit the most
consummate skill, the whole of that work is characterised by a frantic action, which it would transcend the
power of the most accomplished artist to realise in a dignified manner. It was in his busts that the gloated

success of Roubiliac was attained.

Wilton, who occupied a prominent position in the profession after the middle of the eighteenth centuiy,
Avas rather a skilful manufacturer than an able artist. Facility rather than excellence stamps the character of
his works.

In William Banks we perceive the germ of that poetic taste which was afterwards carried to such
remarkable perfection by the immortal Flaxman. Though by no means a prolific artist, still in his bas-reliefs,
and in several of his statues, Banks displays a tenderness of fancy and a beauty of execution which were
scarcely equalled by any contemporary sculptor in Europe. There can be no doubt that his exquisite monu¬
ment to the onlv daughter of Sir Brooke Bootliby, in Ashbourne Church, Derbyshire, suggested those graceful
monuments of a somewhat similar character which, at a later period, reflected so high a degree of credit on
the reputation of Stothard and of Chantrey.

It was, however, rather to the genius of Joseph Nollekens, than of Banks, that Chantrey was indebted
for a model and an instructor. Few men understood better than Nollekens the conventionalities which were
necessary to insure a lively expression of vitality in his busts; and it would be difficult to find, among the
most celebrated works of antiquity, any representations of an iconic character more replete with life and
intelligence than the works ot this artist.

In the more ornamental departments of the art John Bacon occupied an important position. Ilis
numerous monuments to our English worthies display versatility of mind and a ready hand. It is rarely,
however, that we can find in his works any marked departure from the traditions of commonplace. It was
unfortunate for Bacon that the allegorical style in sculpture Avas so popular during the latter part of the
eighteenth century. Ilad the public taste led him to adopt a severer style of composition, it is probable that
his talents as a ready modeller might have produced more valuable memorials.

Notorious as the notices of Horace Walpole and of Allan Cunningham have made the reputation of
Mrs. Darner, Ave fear that their pens have carved for her a more Avortliy and enduring monument than her
own chisel could ever have produced. There is, however, manifested in her works, as in those of the
various masters Ave have enumerated, a marked originality, which distinguishes English productions in
sculpture from those of the contemporary French and Italian schools.

In a succeeding article it aa ill be our pleasing duty to trace still farther the developement of this
originality, in the Avorks of the various artists Avhose precept and practice may be regarded as the profession
of faith ol the English sculptors of the present day.

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PLATE LIV.

he interesting object we now present to our readers, at once transports us to the mysterious region
in which so many of the useful and ornamental arts first had their origin. The country in which the art of
printing, the use of gunpowder, and of the mariner’s compass, the manufactures of silk and porcelain, have
been prevalent from the earliest ages, must ever command our respect and excite our curiosity.

Except from the vague reports of Marco Polo, Purchas, and some few other travellers being for the
most part Jesuit missionaries, and from the minor productions which occasionally reached Europe, little was
known, until the present century, respecting Chinese art and industry. The celebrated architect of Somerset
House, Sir William Chambers, it is true, on his return from China, more than a hundred years ago,
endeavoured to reproduce in England the architectural forms which had made a strong impression on his
fancy, during his residence as a young man in that country. In 1757 he published a folio volume of
“ Designs of Chinese Buildings, Furniture, Dresses, &c„ engraved by the best hands,” from his own sketches
and measurements. The Pagoda in Kew Gardens was erected from his designs in 1762, and in the following
year he published another folio volume of “ Plans, Elevations, Sections, and Perspective Views of the Gardens
and Buildings at Kew.” Sir William’s knowledge of Chinese art was, however, very limited; and by adopting
too readily the infoimation given to him by others, he incurred not only severe lampooning by anonymous writers,
but the giavel leprobation of Lord Macartney; whose embassy to China tended more than any previous event to
enlarge our acquaintance with the productions of that extraordinary empire. That expedition led to the
publication of the valuable works of Sir George Staunton and Mr. Barrow; and the restrictions which so loiw
excluded Europeans from all intercourse with the Chinese having at last been removed, much valuable
information has been diffused by the works of Mr. Clarke Abel, Mr. Davis, Dr. Gutzlaff, and many others.

In examining the characteristics of Chinese ornamental art, it is difficult to discover what classes of
natural objects have been selected, as suggestive of the conventional treatment adopted by the designers;
since, in almost every article produced, the leading outline rarely recalls anything more refined or elevated
than the rare fat Josses, and singular monsters of the old dragon china. The highest effort of the artists
appears to have been directed to the accumulation of eccentric and bulbous scrolls and nodules, together with
intricate and elaborate geometrical patterns. In this latter variety of design, they display considerable

ingenuity and dexterity. Proverbial for their skill in direct imitation, and minute and careful copying, the

Chinese are eminently successful in the representation in colour of fishes, birds, insects, flowers, foliage, and
similar objects; and the taste with which they apply such ornaments to variously-moulded surfaces indicates
great refinement of perception, if not fertility of imagination. Mr. Barrow observes, that “ their works of
sculpture are defective in form, attitude, and proportion. They have, indeed, the art of cutting stone, wood,
and ivory, remarkably sharp and clean; but their productions are sometimes distorted and unnatural.” As
the probable cause of the deformity of their representations of the human figure, the same writer dwells

upon that aversion to the practice of anatomy, which the Chinese carry to a remarkable extent.

Within the last ten years the artistic productions of China have been rendered familiar to us by the
collections which have been brought to England, and in the Great Exhibition of 1S51 they were presented to

A LOOKING-GLASS FRAME, CARVED IN EBONY.

, i i„ „„; n t nf view It would be superfluous, in the present notice, to dwell
us in a striking and very ” a ^ ^ and metal , or upo n their ability as carvers of ivory and

upon oyerbial; and the latter is suffici ently demonstrated by the beautiful concentric

"n d elaborate chessmen in those materials, which have so long been popular marvels of dexterous
execution In future articles we shall have occasion to notice the bronzes and enamels of China, an tie
T 1 le vases which they form in that rare and beautiful material,-jade-stone. At present we may limit
r" treated carving so profusely employed in China, of which the accompanying Plate

SUPP I:;"”m. Chambers, “ so common in the buildings of the ancients, is likewise very
frequent in thole of the Chinese;” and our earliest recollections of the «willow-pattern plate” illustrate rts
constant occurrence in their domestic architecture. Screens, lattices, porticoes, and verandahs ot peifoiatcc
woodwork, abound in all the edifices of the Celestial Empire. Of these the commonest assume rectangular
forms whilst the more costly and elaborate are diversified by figures of animals, birds, flowers, and fruits; the
whole’ being coloured and gilt in a gay and rich, but, at the same time, harmonious manner. The Rev. G
N. Wright, author of the literary illustrations of “Allom’s Views in China,” observes that “the wads and
ceilino-s of the dining-parlour are always decorated with fretwork, carved designs m hard woods, and on urn y-
coloured paper-hangings.” He adds that “ the fronts of the principal apartments are open to the air, with
the exception of a lattice-work, which is gilt and brightly painted.” To the same effect Sir William Chambers
states that “ the bottom or farther end of the room is entirely composed of folding-doors, the upper part o
which are of lattice-work, with painted gauze, which admits light into the bed-room. These doors are neatly
made of wood, having several characters and figures on them, and are sometimes richly varnished in red, blue,

yellow, and other colours.”

The skill of the Chinese carvers finds constant employment in the decoration of cabinets, book-cases,
tables, frames (such as that which we engrave), stands for vases, figures of animals, and an infinite variety of
ornamental objects; and it is exercised alike upon pearl, ivory, ebony, and various kinds of wood. In illustration
of the taste and industry of these artists we may especially mention two articles, which may be remembered
in the Chinese department of the Great Exhibition“ A bedstead of curious and finished workmanship, inlaid
with ivory and mother-of-pearl;” and “A sideboard in carved wood, inlaid with ebony and mcrusted with
ivory, with eight elaborately-carved panels in yellow wood, representing trees, fruit, and animals.

The windows of Chinese buildings are sometimes merely round or oval openings in the walls, with carved
and gilt perforated frames. Others are formed by thin plates of pearl, horn, paper, silk, or gauze, and
divided into panes of various shapes by wooden frames. Some of these present ingenious and tasteful patterns,
recallino- to the mind, though with less happy effect, the perforated windows of India and Tunis; of the latter

of which we have already given an illustration.

With respect to the materials of which Chinese mirrors are ordinarily made, we may observe that glass
is still a comparative rarity in the interior of the country. Sir George Staunton, in his account of Lord
Macartney’s embassy, informs us that “there is no manufacture of glass in China, except at Canton, "here,
instead of fusing the rough ingredients, the manufacturer is satisfied with only melting broken pieces of that
material and forming it into new shapes. The glass beads and buttons, of various forms and colours, worn
by persons of rank, are chiefly made at Venice, and this is one among the remnants of the great trade which
the Venetians formerly carried on with the East.” Spectacles are made of rock-crystal, cut by a rude
process into thin lamime; and although glass is sometimes used for the lanterns so common in the empiie,

sheets of paper, pearl, horn, or mica, are far more generally employed.

Ancient metallic mirrors, common in China before the introduction of glass, have been exhibited in
England; and polished steel is still used there for the same purpose. In Mr. Allom’s work, already
mentioned, there is an engraving of the Boudoir and Bedchamber ot a lady ot iank; in lefeience to which
it is observed, that “ glass mirrors have long been in use in China, although little progress has been made in
the art of glass-making generally, the manufactures of Europe being largely imported. lhese chambeis aie
often resplendent with looking-glasses, in some of which the external landscape and the passeis-by aie distinctly
seen by the fair inhabitants, without the trouble of rising from their couches. The mirrors are of xeiy thin
and inferior glass, scarcely thicker than good English writing-paper, but are skilfully coated \\ ith an amalgam
which renders them abundantly truthful in reflecting the features.”

PLATE LV.

STOVE IN WHITE l’ORCELAIN,

BY HOFFMAN OF BERLIN.

In spite of the complacency with which all Englishmen habitually regard their own fireside , it has
been frequently urged, and almost as frequently admitted, that there is scarcely any country in Europe in
which the management of a fire is so popularly misunderstood. The quantity of heat commonly wasted by
allowing the smoke and heated gases to escape without taking the slightest advantage ot their caloric;—
the pains usually bestowed on making the register opening (if there is one) sufficiently large not only to
carry off the products of combustion, but to drain the room of its fresh air, and create a perpetual draught
as well; — the provision made for keeping the lower parts of the chimney cool, so as to check the proper
action of the draught and encourage the precipitation of soot,—all contrast most unfavourably with the ingenious
and economical devices by which the Germans extract and utilise the heat-giving propeities ot then fuel, and
at the same time benefit their health and their pockets : the former, by abolishing the chilly and insidious
currents which in England so constantly induce rheumatism and catarrh; and the lattei, by obtaining the
greatest amount of comfort out of the smallest possible quantity of combustible matter.

The common German Stove is a very clever piece of contrivance. It usually consists of a large rectangular
erection, formed of tiles about six or eight inches square, glazed on the outer face, and having a projecting
rim all round the inner face of each tile; this allows of the tiles being built up like bricks set on edge, and
they are held together by pieces of wire passed through corresponding holes in the rims of adjoimmr tiles.
In constructing a stove of the common sort, a base rather less than a foot high is first formed with brick¬
work set in clay, and cased with the glazed tiles ; a small space being left for the ashpit. On this base the
fire-box is built with tiles and firebricks, and the outer enclosure of the stove is then carried up to the
desired height with the glazed tiles, all the joints being closed with prepared clay. In order to prevent the smoke
and heated” air from the fire from passing off too rapidly into the chimney, the interior of the stove is subdivided
by horizontal partitions formed with large flat tiles, which are supported by the projecting rims ot the tiles
forming the outside. The ends of these horizontal divisions being allowed to communicate alternately on one side
of the stove and on the other, a continuous flue is formed, through the whole of which the smoke must gra¬
dually rise before it reaches the outlet to the chimney. In order to prevent the escape of the smoke through
the joints between the tiles, the whole of the interior of the stove is well plastered with clay, which must be
allowed to dry very gradually in the first instance; and then, by the action of the heat, it acquires a great
degree of hardness, rendering the whole stove a very solid structure. The fire-box is generally large, as the
fuel used is either wood or peat; and when once the fire is lighted in a stove, the fire-box is completely
filled with fuel, so that a very great heat is speedily produced in the interior of the stove. I he door
being closed, air is only admitted in very small quantities to maintain combustion, so that but little fuel
requires to be added subsequently. The non-conducting nature of the material of the stove causes the
heat to pass but slowly from the inner to the outer surface, and thence into the room: consequently, the
temperature of the outer surface of these stoves does not rise much above blood-heat; thus avoiding the
vitiation of the air by its contact with highly-heated surfaces, as is generally the case with iron stoves.

STOVE IN WHITE PORCELAIN.

The stoves of a superior class, for the manufacture of which Berlin has acquired a high reputation, do not
differ in the principle of their construction from the common ones just described; but the tiles of which
they are formed are of larger dimensions, and are moulded to a variety of forms, so as to make up stoves
of elegant design. Care is always taken not to have any joints at the projecting angles of the stove, and

in other parts they are so introduced as not to be conspicuous, and thus the stove has the appearance

of consisting but of one piece. The mode of joining and securing the tiles in their place is the same as

that already described. In these stoves the direction of the smoke channel necessarily depends upon the
external form and design, so that frequently an alternately ascending and descending direction is given to the
smoke, instead of allowing it to pass through horizontal passages. When stoves of this construction are
intended to heat with coal, which is rarely the case in Germany, it is necessary to introduce small soot-doors
to clean out the interior of the stove; but this is not required with the fuel in common use.

Stores constructed of unglazed substances, such as inferior earthenware or terra-cotta, were common in
Germany up to the end of the last century, but of late years they have been almost entirely superseded by
those made up of glazed tiles. It was found not only that the glaze protected the surface of the object,
lendering it much harder, but that, while it provided for more easy cleansing, it at the same time radiated
moie heat, and was thus both more economical and more ornamental than the old-fashioned article. At first
the glaze was applied to objects executed in common clays of coarse “body,” either black or of some dark
colour, such as slate or deep red; but more recently fine earthenware, with a coating of a pure white hue,
and protected by a colourless vitreous glaze, has been gradually taking the place of all other inferior materials.

the gieat peifection to which the manufacture of this article had been brought in Prussia was for the
fiist time publicly manifested at the Great Exhibition of Industry which took place at Berlin in the year
1H14. A huge collection of beautiful specimens was contributed to that display, and evidence was given

that the manufacturers of the capital and its suburbs were far in advance of those of the Prussian provinces
generally, and indeed of the rest of Germany.

In the Official Report of the Exhibition above alluded to, the productions of Messrs. J. F. Putsch,
C. Ilauisch, II. Petri, Cornelius Gorman, lingerer, and particularly of T. C. Feilner and Co., are comprised
under the more favourable list, and are honourably though briefly mentioned. The last-named house is to be
especially regarded as occupying a prominent position in the history of the manufacture, and as having mate¬
rially assisted in its developement and consequent extension. This firm was established about thirty years
ago by the late M. Feilner, to whom the credit may be awarded of having been among the first in' Berlin
who studied to combine elegance with utility in all the different branches of the potter’s art. This happy
union especially gained for his productions a sale not only throughout Germany, but in foreign countries as
well. His success must in great measure be attributed to the assistance he derived from the universal

talents of Sehinkel, i\ho supplied lnm with both advice and designs. Since the death of M. Feilner, the

manufactory which lie established has been carried on by Messrs. Zimmermann and Friese, on the same

pi maples vs Inch originally procured its celebrity: those of seeking constantly the co-operation of the most
distinguished artists and designers.

In the above-mentioned Report particular allusion is made to a large stove in the Renaissance style,
executed by this firm for the Royal Palace at Hanover; and the manner in which the peculiar difficulties

presented by the elaborate ornamental forms of the style were surmounted is spoken of with great praise :

eienness and polity of the white glazing being also alluded to as deserving particular notice. This
firm has not confined its operations to the manufacture of stoves, but has produced also, with considerable
success, various architectural ornaments-such as candelabra, consoles, columns, &c. -suitable to be introduced
into the buildings of that great metropolis of brickwork and stucco, Berlin.

It is to be noticed, that this branch of industry is almost entirely confined to the north of Germany,

anc mine paitmuiaily to Prussia, which was the only state the earthenware stoves of which were represented
at the Zollverem Exposition of 1844.

I' 1 '. '. l ° ,ltt ' " 1 “ uflctur '"> of Merlin to whom we have alluded, the Report mention, several

M ‘ Proportions of which it lavishes man, paragraphs of encomium. Among these are

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PLATE LVI.

INDIAN EMBROIDERY, IN WHITE SILK UPON BLACK NET,

DACCA.

In our last article on the productions of Dacca (Plate XLYIII) we promised to continue the subject
by a notice ol the needlework applied to their embellishment; and we cannot better fulfil that promise than
in connexion with the beautiful object which is represented in the present Plate. We shall again avail
ourselves of the recent “Descriptive and Historical Account of the Cotton Manufacture of Dacca,” by Mr.
James Taylor, who observes, that “ the art of sewing in Bengal is almost entirely confined to the Mahomedan
portion of the community. It is not practised among the Hindoos, except by a few persons, chiefly females,
of the cast of dhohee ; and it is a branch of industry in which they do not display any skill. Indeed, so little
acquainted are the Hindoos with the use of the needle, that Dr. Buchanan states he is not aware of any
Hindoo word for sewing, except that used for passing the shuttle in the act of weaving.”

“Fine needlework or embroidery,” as Mr. Taylor remarks, “appears to have had its origin in Egypt.

The Israelites there learned the art, and excelled in it before they settled in the land of Canaan; and the

Phoenicians and Greeks derived their knowledge of it from that country, and were the means of diffusing it
among the nations of the West. It appears to have been extensively practised in Mesopotamia about the
end of the ninth century. Embroidery is, indeed, an art for which that country has always been celebrated;

and it is probable that from the banks of the Euphrates it was first introduced into Bengal.”

Among other proofs that the Indian embroidery was originally derived from Mesopotamia, Mr. Taylor
dwells upon the fact already mentioned, that the art is practised in Dacca only by Mahomedans,— the
Hindoos confining the exercise of their wondrous skill to spinning and weaving. He also alludes to a tradition,
that the needles formerly used at Dacca were procured from Bassora. “ The different branches of needle
work in India are chiefly practised by men, and are carried on as distinct trades. Silai (sewing) affords
employment to a large body of durzees (tailors) of Dacca, who prepare a variety of turbans; skull-caps;
jackets, with loose sleeves and open cuffs; long close garments, worn like shirts; double-breasted gowns,
having the skirts plaited with folds ; and bodices, spencers, and petticoats for females.”

In reference to one of the most curious branches of Indian needlework, Mr. Taylor observes, as Moorcroft
and other travellers have before him, that in “ rafu-gari, or darning, the Mahomedans display a degree of
manual dexterity almost equal to that exhibited by the Hindoos in weaving. An expert rafugar can extract
a thread twenty yards long from a piece of muslin of the same dimensions, and replace it with one of the
finest, quality. This operation, which is called choonae , or picking out a thread, is generally done when a
coarse thread is discovered in a web of muslin after bleaching. The rafugars are principally employed in
repairing cloths that have been injured during bleaching, in removing weavers' knots from threads, joining
broken threads, and forming the gold and silver headings on cloths. Most of them are addicted to the use
of opium, and generally execute the finest work whilst they are under the influence of this drug. They
constitute a distinct class, or Mahomedan guild. The number of their houses, or families, at Dacca is
estimated at 150.”

“ Zar-do-zi, or embroidery,” we are told by the same valuable authority, “ is an art for which Dacca has

INDIAN EMBROIDERY, IN WHITE SILK UPON BLACK NET.

lono- been celebrated. Muslins, net fabrics, and woollen shawls and scarfs, are embroidered with silk, gold
and silver thread, and with the wings (elytra) of the beetle. The silk which is used is both of the common

and floss varieties, and appears to have been formerly an article of export; as the name of c Dacca silk’ is

still given to one description of this material used for flat embroidery in England. The gold and silver
thread and wire (hadla) are of different sorts, and bear various names, according to the particular purposes to
which they are applied.” Of the mode of making this “ badla ” we have given a description in our notice of

Plate XII.

In the process of embroidery, “the cloth is stretched out in a horizontal bamboo-frame of rude con¬
struction, raised about two feet from the ground; and the figures intended to be worked or embroidered are
drawn upon it by designers, who are generally Hindoo painters ( nuquasK ). On woollen cloths the outlines
are traced with chalk, and on muslin with pencil, and the body of the design is copied from coloured
drawings. The embroiderers, seated upon the floor around the frame, ply the needle, which, it may be
remarked, they do not draw towards, but, on the contrary, push from them, as is the case with all native

sewers in India. In place of scissors, they commonly use a piece of glass or china ware to cut the threads.

Like the darners, the embroiderers constitute a distinct society, or Maliomedan guild of artizans.”

In our notice of Plate XXXVI., we offered some remarks on combinations of colour as applied to the
decoration of plane surfaces. Those remarks were based in a great measure on the important conclusions
enunciated by Mr. Owen Jones, in his valuable paper read before the Royal Institute of British Architects
(15th December, 1850), on the subject of the decorations proposed for the Exhibition Building in Hyde Park.
In briefly pursuing the subject, we shall again avail ourselves of that gentleman’s most able guidance.

The combinations of colour generally prevalent in the Indian embroideries of the present day are peculiarly
interesting, as preserving traditionally those simple arrangements by which the happiest effects of Mahomedan
decoration were attained in those localities where the cultivation of the arts was carried to its highest pitch
by the Moors. In the simple contrasts of the primary colours, occasionally mixed with the secondaries, the
modern practice of India recalls, in many respects, the treatment of the architecture of the ancients. Mr.
Owen Jones remarks that, “in the early periods, the prevailing colours used in decoration were the primaries,
blue, red, and yellow; the secondaries appearing very sparingly. We find this to be the case equally in the
remains of Nineveh, Central America, Egypt, and Greece, and throughout the vestiges of Eastern civilisation
generally. We find also everywhere that, as time wore on, the secondary colours invaded the dominion of the
primaries, and blue and red were supplanted by green and purple. In Egypt, in the temples built by the
Pharaohs, blue, red, and yellow mainly prevail; whilst in those built by the Ptolemies green and purple take their
place. In those of the Roman period the colours are still further degraded to a dull and incongruous muddi¬
ness. In the Greek temples, as far as we can gather from the few remains of colour, the same law prevails;
whilst in Pompeii we find the secondaries and tertiaries to be the ruling harmonies. In the Alhambra, the blue
and red of the Moors were painted over with green and purple by Charles V. and his successors; and with
the worst effect. In modern Cairo, and in the East generally, we have green constantly appearing side by
side with red, where blue would have been used in earlier times.”

That tranquil spirit of content which leads the Indian races to refine upon what exists, rather than to
change its nature, has induced a retention of the primitive scales of contrast, rather than a tendency to a
degradation of tint, by the addition of lowered and broken hues. Thus it is that they appear to have avoided
falling into that state of transition of taste which Mr. Owen Jones pictures as the cause of the degradation he
has described. “It would 866111,” he observes, “either that the human mind, ever seeking for change, became
weary of the simple harmonies which the primaries afforded, and sought more complicated effects from the
secondaries and tertiaries; or, that this change arose from the decline of art and the incapacity of artists to
deal with the primary colours in their pure state, which caused them to take refuge in the hues of the
secondaries and tertiaries, in which error in the balance of colour was less fatal; although, to produce perfect
harmony with the secondaries and tertiaries is, no doubt, much more difficult.”

VVe cannot but feel, therefore, that a study of the systems of colouring now prevalent among the
Mahomedan embroiderers of India, could not fail to throw considerable light upon the practice of the
Moors generally, in the highest periods of their greatness; and that from the vivid colouring of the East we

may learn to re-illuminate the fading beauties of the Alhambra, and the other monuments of the Western
Mahomedan Empire.

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PLATE LVIL

THE HUNTER AND PANTHER,

A GROUP IN MARBLE, BY JERICHAU OF COPENHAGEN.

One amongst the many remarkable features, of the Great Exhibition was the opportunity it afforded to
the English public of becoming acquainted with the excellence of the works of sculpture produced by the
most distinguished foreign artists. The now familiar names of Kiss, Rietschel, Magni, Marochetti, Strazza,
Jerichau, De Bay, and many others, were, for the most part, utterly unknown to the general public in this
country until the great experiment of an international Exhibition brought some of their choicest productions
to our shores. In former articles we have illustrated several of these admirable works, and have now the
satisfaction of presenting to our readers a composition which we have no doubt is fresh in the memories of all.

In the excellent series of notices on the Great Exhibition which appeared last year in the columns of the
“ Morning Chronicle,” not the least interesting were those devoted to the subject of the Fine Arts. The
writer of those articles has carefully and impartially reviewed the works of sculpture displayed both by British
and foreign artists, and thus adverts to M. Jerichau of Copenhagen, and especially to the group we now
engrave:—“ While we recognise more particularly in the drawings of this artist much of the vigour and
imagination of his great master Thorwaldsen, we perceive in his finished works a too sedulous imitation of
the antique, which occasionally degenerates into mannerism: but for this fault, his works would he among the
best in the Exhibition. Ilis £ Adam and Eve ’ is too direct a reproduction of classic models. The £ Hunter
and Panther ’ is a magnificent composition. A young and graceful youth, active as a fawn and vigorous as
a gladiator, holds in one arm a panther’s cub, whilst the mother, enraged at the abstraction of her offspring,
dashes savagely upon her foe. With a determination soaring above the pain inflicted by the claws of the
animal, the hunter raises his arm to strike a death-blow to his ferocious assailant. I he moment has been

chosen when the victory is fairly balanced, and the instant of rigidity in every muscle, both of man and

beast, prior to the renewal of the mortal strife, has been admirably seized. Like Gibson s Iluntei, this
group forcibly illustrates the facility with which the true artist may select the appropriate moment when

intensity of rapid action is implied rather than absolutely represented.

By the courtesy of Regner Westenholz, Esq., the Danish Commissioner, we have been enabled to procure

the following particulars of M. Jerichau’s interesting career. lie was born in 1810 at Assens, a small town
in the Island of Funen, in Denmark. Ilis father, whose trade and small fortune had been destroyed by the
financial crisis of 1814, died a few years after, leaving a widow with twelve children. Our artist Inning
arrived at an age when it became necessary to select his future profession, his mother proposed that he should
enter the Church, although we are told that he was not much inclined for serious studies. His artistic
genius was displayed almost in infancy, and in his earliest years he often occupied himself in draw mg or
carving. His inclination for art becoming gradually more developed, Ins mother resolved to apprentice him
to a house-painter; but, disgusted with the ordinary routine of the business, and mortified at the sacrifice of
time which he wished to devote to more elevated studies, Jerichau deserted his master before the completion
of his apprenticeship, and repairing to Copenhagen, became a student in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in

that city Supported by the small savings of his widowed parent, he applied himself with zeal and assiduity

TIIE HUNTER AND PANTHER, BY JEBICHAU.

to liis studies, and soon made rapid progress, gaining several prizes and acquiring the esteem ol his fellow-
students, who consulted him in their works. Being, however, unsuccessful in one endeavour to obtain a
prize, and distressed with the fear of becoming a burden to his mother, he resolved to go to home, in the
hope of improving his position. A Danish frigate being ready to sail for Leghorn, to convey Thorwaldsen
back from Italy to his native land, Jericliau obtained permission from the Government to embark in it, and
arrived in Rome with only sixteen ducats in his possession. An artist to whom he had been introduced
undertook to present him to his great countryman Thorwaldsen, who received him with a characteristic
kindness which at once inspired him with a favourable omen of his future success. He continued to work
and study diligently; but, in spite of Strict economy, his small means soon became exhausted. The benevolent
Thorwaldsen had quitted Rome; and, disappointed in the aid he had expected from Denmark, he even, in
his extreme distress, contemplated suicide. Fortunately, his immediate wants were relieved by two young
German artists, and he was again enabled to prosecute his labours. The Academy at Copenhagen having
received some of his compositions, recommended him to the royal bounty, and the Queen of Denmark com¬
missioned him to execute a frieze representing the marriage of Alexander and Roxana. This, which was
exhibited at Rome and much admired, led to a commission for a “ Penelope’'' from Mr. Abendroth, of
Hamburg. A colossal group of “ Hercules and Hebe” was his next important composition, and this he is
now executing in marble for the Royal Palace at Copenhagen. Much as the last-mentioned group was admired,
the artist did not escape criticism, being in fact charged with a direct plagiarism of the celebrated torso; an
accusation which he repelled by exhibiting his group side by side with a cast of the antique model. However
triumphant the result, Jericliau for a time abandoned subjects of mythology and ancient history; and his most
successful romantic composition has been the “ Hunter and Panther,” now engraved ; of which the artist has
executed duplicate copies in marble lor Prince Gallentin of St. Petersburg, and Baron Ilambro of London.

In 1846 he married Elizabeth Baumann, whose paintings have acquired much celebrity, and one of whose
works is in the possession of the Marquess of Lansdowne. In 1819 he returned to Denmark, after an absence
of many years, and was immediately appointed Professor of Sculpture in the Royal Academy. Besides the
works we have already mentioned, and the group in the Great Exhibition of k< Adam and Eve weeping over the
fall of Man,” Jerichau has executed a colossal statue of Christ, for the Princess Albert of Prussia; “The
Angel of the Resurrection,” for Ritzenberg, and afterwards for the King of Denmark; and a sepulchral
monument to Mademoiselle Almee de Goethe.

*" \ I

rill • l M h I iut. A !

Vi 1 ' !

P V WIN TOM !} : 'OK r

k i >N I - I N i

H 7

PLATE LVIII.

VASE AND DISH IN PARIAN,

MINTON OF STO KE-UPON-TRENT.

Few among the many novelties in art-manufacture introduced within the last ten years have been more
pleasing or interesting than the ceramic material known under the various names of parian, statuary porcelain,
and carrara, each of which is essentially the same.

Since the priority of introduction of this material has been a matter of debate between those connected
with the establishments of Messrs. Minton and Co. and Mr. Alderman Copeland, we can scarcely be expected
to decide “where doctors disagree;” but we maj at least recognise that, at the present time, both the
above-named gentlemen are entitled to the highest praise for the energy and success with which they have
employed their respective materials. Mr. Minton has brought what he terms “parian” to an exquisite consistency;
and has succeeded, by means of it, in producing a ramYk'&bte vavvAx A \\SfeM. aw& ovwmietital objects.

The white biscuit figures of Meissen, Sevres, Berlin, and Derby, have long been known and admired.
The material in which they are executed is, indeed, peculiarly well adapted to the reproduction of cabinet

sculpture. Biscuit may be defined as hard porcelain, once fired, and unglazed. As at present employed by

Mr. Minton, parian is a highly-vitrified, hard, bisque porcelain; much more so, indeed, than either the stone
or old jasper ware of Wedgewood, the old stone ware made in the Potteries thirty years ago, or the hard
bisque porcelain of Sevres, Meissen, or Berlin. It is superior to the bisque china formerly used for ornamental
purposes and statuettes, inasmuch as the latter had a dry, chalky, and occasionally bluish, appearance, from
which the new material is exempt.

The mode of producing figures and other objects in parian is one of peculiar interest, and of extreme
delicacy. Unlike the ordinary objects of pottery and porcelain—which are formed entire by the wheel, or by
the hand of the modeller, and afterwards fired—articles in this material are made from what is termed “slip,
beiim the fluid mixture of clay and flint, reduced to the consistence of cream; that degree of fluidity being

necessary to ensure the perfect mixture which is essential for the subsequent mutual chemical action in the

fire. The complete object is moulded in several parts, which, when united and dried, undergo successive
firings; by the operation of which, and in the process of drying, they shrink to three-fourths of their original
size. The judgment necessary in the first instance to anticipate this excessive shrinking, and the extreme care
required in fitting the various parts together, render the manufacture one of great difficulty; and but for the
ability displayed by our skilful and tasteful manufacturers, the material could never have been brought into
general use. The early experiments were not only discouraging, but would have been ruinous to any producer

of limited means.

With this general intimation of the difficulties attending the production of works in parian, we proceed
to abridge the following minute description of the process from Mr. Robert Hunts valuable “Hand-book to
the Great Exhibition.” “The material is used in a liquid state, technically termed 4 slip. It is pouied into
the moulds forming" the figure or group, which, being made of plaster, rapidly absorb a portion of the
moisture and the coating immediately next the mould soon becomes of a sufficient thickness for the cast,
when the superfluous slip is thrown back. The cast remains in the moulds for some time at a high

VASE AM) DISH IN PARIAN.

temperature, by which, through the evaporation which takes place, it is brought to a state of clay, and

sufficiently firm to bear its own weight when relieved from the moulds, which are then opened, and the

different portions of the subject taken out. Each figure requires many moulds ; the head, arms and hands,
legs, body, parts of the drapery, and other details of the subject, are generally moulded separately. These
parts being removed from the mould have then to be repaired, the seams caused by the junctions of the

mould cleared off, and the whole put together. This is a process requiring the greatest nicety and judgment,

particularly in nude figures, in which the junction of the parts, generally presenting a level circular surface,
requires the decision of an educated eye to fix with accuracy. The parts are attached together by a slip,

castm 0 , tlie surfaces to be joined together being either dipped into it, or the slip is
applied with a pencil; and according to the discretion with which this is executed, and the neatness with
which the sections of the moulds are made to fit, will be the perfection of the work. The slip in this case
is merely required to soften the surface of the clay of the members which have to be united, just sufficiently
to cause adhesion. All that is used beyond that requirement is not only superfluous, but actually detrimental.
I he figure or group being thus put together remains two or three days, when, being sufficiently dry, it is
supported by props made of the same material, placed in such positions as to bear a portion of the weight,
and prevent any undue pressure that might cause the figure to sink or yield in the firing. Each end of
the prop is embedded in a coating of ground-flint, to prevent adhesion, and is thus easily removed. The

figure is then placed in the oven, and submitted to a heat of about fiO° of Wedgewood’s pyrometer. This

operation, which is gradually effected, occupies from sixty to seventy hours. The fires are then withdrawn,
and the oven allowed to cool; and, when sufficiently so, the figures are drawn out, and the seams rubbed
don n: they are again placed in “ saggers” and embedded in sand, and then retired at a still hhdier
temperature than they were previously submitted to. The bedding of sand is preferred in this part of the
process to props, as it more equally and effectually supports the figure. It could not be used in the first
instance, when the figure is in the clay, as by resisting the contraction it would cause it to be shattered to

pieces. It is sometimes necessary to fire casts three times, a peculiar degree of heat being required to

produce the extreme beauty of surface which the finest specimens present. The total contraction of the
figures, from the mould to the finished state, is one-fourth ; the contraction of the slip with which the
mould is first charged, to the state in which it leaves the mould, is one-sixteenth,—again it contracts
another sixteenth m the process of drying for the oven, and one-eightli in the process of vitrification ; so
that a model two feet high will produce a fired cast of eighteen inches only.”

Small statuettes were among the first objects executed in statuary porcelain and parian, and the number
and wuiety of them in the Great Exhibition sufficiently evinced their popularity. As a means of diffusing a
taHe foi the sculptor s art, by multiplying his productions, this material is invaluable. The works of Bell, Foley,
Mai shall, Gibson, Marochetti, and many others, have already been extensively reproduced by Messrs. Minton
and Mr. Alderman Copeland. The Art-Union of London—a society which has zealously laboured, in spite
of many difficulties, to promote the advancement of art—encouraged at an early period this beautiful manu¬
facture; and Mr. Gibson’s warm approval of it, and his ready assent to the reproduction of his own composi¬
tions, materially aided its progress. The "Narcissus” of Gibson, and the “Shepherd Boy” of the late

J. R. Wyatt (from the marble statue in the possession of the Duke of Sutherland), were amongst the first
figures produced in this material.

The perfection attained at the present time in the manufacture is strikingly displayed by the vase and

cish m the style of Cellnn, which we now engrave. These were the production of a French modeller employed

m Mr. Minton s establishment. In style of design and composition these objects offer a happy departure from

ie characteristics of French Renaissance, which are usually somewhat too grotesque. They may be regarded as

exhibiting a compromise between the style of that country and that of the same period in Italy. The pro-

poition „ the several parts is very agreeably balanced, and the modelling executed with great nicety. In

one important point, the neglect of which frequently produces unpleasing results, the vase and'dish we engrave

suggest how essential it is to the perfection of such objects that their various parts and ornaments should be

m agreeable proportion one to another, that foliated forms should never overpower structural lines and

mou c mgs, and that the mouldings themselves should not be ponderous, while the flowers are minute in
size and petty m relief.

K J

M .

.• » ' f 1 N

PLATE LTX.

PIANOFORTES,

BY COLLARD AND COLLAR!) OF LONDON.

In succeeding to the celebrated firm of Clementi and Co., Messrs. Collat'd pledged themselves to so high
a class of production, that if their contributions to the Great Exhibition had been ot any but first-rate
quality they must infallibly have risked the loss of that distinguished reputation which had been originally
obtained by the firm of Longman and Broderip,—the predecessors of Clementi; through whose mechanical
talent some of the most important improvements in the construction of pianofortes had been obtained for this
country. Of the instruments contributed by the Messrs. Collard to the Great Exhibition it has been remarked,
that the same qualities of excellence characterised their grandest and most expensive pianofortes and their most

unpretending and, consequently, least expensive instruments.

In the present article we propose to give some notices of the early history of the introduction of the piano¬
forte, and its origin in more imperfect and older musical instruments, reserving for a future article (m illustration
of Messrs. Broadwood’s admirable productions) some observations as to the present condition ot the manufacture.

From the earliest periods in which stringed instruments have been at all used, only three modes ot
eliciting musical sounds from them have been practised. The first by friction, as m the violin; the seemu oy
the u S ; of the finger, of a pointed quill, or a hook, which, drawing the string aside, produced the vibration
and the required sound by releasing it; and the third, by the employment ot a plectrum or other mstiume ,
producin'*- he vibration by a blow given to the cord. It is by a recognition of the essential difference
between Ihe two latter of'these principles, -those, namely, of ft*** and of p_, that we are enabled
!o perceive the distinction between the old virginals, dulcimers, spinets, and harpsichords and the modem

pianoforte That the production of musical tones by percussion applied to strings, and conveyed and
pianotoi te. 1 unknown in the Middle Ages, is shown by a manuscript ot

regulated by means of corresponding „eys w.s thc fourteenth century

the thirteenth center, preyed » the L»«, o « “ „ rf J „ bjeol by M p«, principn,

in the National U,^ « ho J g J ,„d, i_ ot t„i,

kirrVin “«7h L, be recognised the string, ptatd verde.il, and acted upon b, snnpl. arrange,.™,s o,

hammers, so combined as to be m o instruments which preceded and doubt.

When we endeavour to discriminate between - as tQ its immed iate origin. Mr. Dodd,

- - r « on the subject. He remarks, that

m his work on Bi - - « ‘ ’ '? as the mo dern dulcimer occasionally seen in our streets)

“ the ancieIlt P saltel : y . C 7"ii lc ralTothers' have emanated; and, according to Mr. Hogarth, + it consisted of a
was probably the ongnn ^ ^ a soim ding-board of fir, and on this sounding-board were

square box of small dtp , notes of the scale. They were struck or played

stretched a set; of strings o stee J ^ ^ ^ A great change was effected when the little rods

upon by two little icd. gadl stri was provided with a lever which struck it.

were abandoned and m ™ instr uments as these, and, in the form of an instrument called the

The lever constitutes the key or

i , iq-i ■+• Hoeartli’s C{ History of AIusic.

* In tl,c " Revue ct Gazette Musicals de Paris,” 81* August, 18ul. t Hogart

PIANOFORTES.

clavicord, was provided at the hinder end with a little brass wedge, that struck the string when the front
end of the key was struck down. Fo improve the tone elicited from the string, the brass wedge was super¬
seded by a quill, and the instrument then acquired the names of the virginal and the spinet. As a still
further improvement, it was proposed to have two strings to every note, so as to increase the volume of
sound. This involved a considerable increase in the complexity of the mechanism, and the improved instru¬
ment, under the name of the harpsichord, was in high repute during the greater part of the last century.
At length occurred the happy thought of dispensing with the quills, and using little wooden hammers covered
with leather, as a means of eliciting the tones of the strings; a modification which gave rise to the modern
pianoforte, so named from the power of the instrument in producing piano and forte, or soft and loud effects.”

There appears to be some uncertainty as to the individual by whom the scientific application of the hammer
to these instruments was made. Authorities have disagreed as to the different amount of merit to be assigned
to Marius of France, Cristofali of Florence, Padre Wood of Rome, or the celebrated organist and theorist,
Schroeter of Germany; all of whom appear, at the commencement of the last century, to have proposed the
adoption of a system of hammers, either suspended over, or held beneath, the strings. We are told, however,
by M. Fetis, that all their inventions were entirely forgotten when Silbermann first executed, in Germany,
about a century ago, the small pianos which subsequently served as models for all instruments of the kind.

Mr. Pole, in his admirable comments on the “ Musical Instruments of the Great Exhibition,” in Newton’s
“ Patent Journal,” states that “the first authentic notice of the instrument which he has been able to discover
is in connexion with the visit of the celebrated musician, John Sebastian Each, to Frederick the Great kin 0 *
of Piussia, in 1/47, three years before that illustrious composer’s death. The king had been so much pleased
with certain ‘ forte-pianos ,’ manufactured by Silbermann of Freyburg, that he bought them all up, to the
number of fifteen, and placed them in different rooms in the palace. When Bach arrived, the king gave up a
concert about to take place, and spent the evening in hearing the great man play on these ‘ forte-pianos and
it was on this occasion that his majesty gave Bach the subject of the well-known ‘ Musikalisches Opfer.’ It is
said that the instruments are—or were, a short time ago—still existing on the premises; but it is probable they
did not subsequently answer the king’s expectations, for it is on record that a harpsichord of the best kind was
made to his express order eighteen years afterwards, namely, in 1705, by Tschudi, the predecessor of the
present firm of Broadwood and Sons, and at that time one of the principal harpsichord makers in London.”*
About the year 17C6, a German named Backers undertook to apply the pianoforte mechanism to the
harpsichord. In this work he was assisted by John Broadwood and by Stodart, at that time workmen in
the employ of Tschudi. After many experiments, the grand-pianoforte mechanism was contrived by these
three individuals, and was in all essential particulars the same as that still used by Messrs. Stodart and
Messrs. Broadwood. It is remarkable for its simplicity, efficiency, and durability, and may emphatically be
termed “the direct action.” It was probably on an instrument made by Backers that Dibdin played in
Covent Garden Theatre in 1707, as announced in an old play-bill in the possession of Messrs. Broadwood.f
Mr. Pole refers to a grand pianoforte, still in existence, the name-board of which bears the inscription,
“Americus Backers, factor et inventor, Jermyn Street, London, 177(5.” One of the most important improve¬
ments in mechanical arrangement was the introduction of the hopper, a small but ingenious contrivance, which
intervenes between the lever, or key, and the hammer, and tends to regulate the action of the latter and

prevent its rebound. This was the invention of Messrs. Longman and Broderip, to whom we have referred
at the commencement of this notice.

Among the earliest manufacturers who devoted themselves to the improvement of the pianoforte were
Tschudi, Stodart, Kirkman, Zumpe, Broadwood, and others. As Mr. Pole remarks,—“ The superiority of the
new instrument soon became so apparent that it gradually superseded the older and more imperfect one,—the
harpsichord, which, within the short space of ten or fifteen years after the introduction of the pianoforte,
entirely ceased to be made. A suitable style of music and school of players were not long wanting. Muzio
Clement, founded both. He played in public on the grand pianoforte at an early period of its history, and
rom that date its progress in public favour was rapid, dementi’s successors have worthily followed in his
steps Finding new wants arise from time to time, they have demanded new improvements to supply them
and t ms the player and the manufacturer vied with each other in the general advance.”

tbc royal harpsichord ' The in i' °" C "* I,0 S l ' lt h s pupds, now on the premises in Great Pulteney Street, represents Tschudi in the act of tuning
ttie loyal Harpsichord. Ihe instrument is still m the palace of Potsdam.”

A t t" Mi 3S •v| Cin U F nntL(1 at Fngth in Mr. Pole’s notice of the subject. The passage alluded to is as follows “ At the end of

Ac ., s tin crier will sing a favourite song from Judith, aecompauied by Mr. Dibdin on a new instrument, called 1>iano-Forte.”

plate lx.

N Professor Beckmann’s “ History of Inventions,”—a work which after the lapse of thirty years fully

maintains its value as a hook of reference,-it i s observed, that there is no certain information of the first

invention of the ribbon-loom. It has been attributed to the Swiss, but the first positive account mentions it
as having been invented at Leyden about the year 1621. There is, however, in the works of the Abbot
Lancellotti, published in 16-29, a circumstantial narrative of a ribbon-loom which was invented at Dantzic
about fifty years before, and which, when set in motion, made from four to six pieces of itself (‘ da se

Stesso ); but the magistrates of the town, fearing lest by this invention many workmen might be deprived

ot employment, interdicted its use, and it further appears, that, not content with this prohibition, they even
caused the inventor to be privately strangled. The same author informs us, that “the States-General of
TJo]laud. '■/'jp&toUr, 9u?uimfiS®lMjL ^hfb mbc of, dim YiWimvVwam, iWuimg'n Vney iirh nOr dftogdfner dudiis’n 'lv. Tn
the Spanish Netherlands, and throughout the greater part of Germany, it was strictly prohibited, and the
Council of Hamburg ordered a loom to be publicly burned.”

After adverting to the education by experience which, led to the abolition of these restrictions, Professor
Beckmann states, that “the ribbon-loom was brought to England from Holland in 1(576, and was then called
the Dutch loom-engine. Its introduction occasioned some disturbances among the ribbon weavers in London,
but its evident utility ensured its adoption.”

\ \ t ar de 1 as the growth of the last thirty years, so immense

has been its progress in that period. It was originally established in the town about 160 years ago,* and
made great progress at an early period afterwards; but the quality of the Coventry silks became greatly
deteriorated so soon as those of France and Italy were prohibited. The effect of that measure was to induce
the manufactures of the town to recede instead of to advance in excellence.

The system of prohibition was brought to a close in 1824, and the reduced price of silk in consequence
greatly stimulated the Coventry trade. Considerable capital was embarked in the fancy branches of the manu¬
facture, and the trade has gone on increasing largely to the present time. The population of the town at
the last census amounted to 36,800, a very large portion of whom are engaged in the ribbon manufacture.
In 1823 there were only five Jacquard looms in the town, but in 1832 their number had increased to 600.

In 1838 the increase was enormous, there being at that time 13,239 looms, of which about 2300 were

Jacquard. There were four dyeing-houses and four throwing-mills in the district, besides several small
establishments, in which raw silk was thrown by hand machinery. After some unsuccessful attempts, a steam-
factory was profitably established about the year 1840. It was speedily followed by others, and there are
now thirty steam-power-loom factories in Coventry, working 1000 looms and employing about 3000 hands
when in full work. These looms can turn at least 7000 pieces in a week, which is at the rate of 364,000
a-year. The total number of manufacturers engaged in the ribbon trade, including “first-hand journey-hands,”
who own the looms on which they work and carry on their trade on their own account, probably exceeds 180.

Although fully competent to the production of ribbons of equal excellence with those of France, the

* We have adverted, in a former
the Edict of Nantes. Mr. Bird, the
trade there by some of these emigrant

article, to the establishment of the silk trade at Spitalfiolds by the French Protestant
"randfather of Mr. Wilbcrforcc Bird, M.P. for Coventry, was assisted in his efforts
$, and many French terms arc still made use of in the manufacture.

s, after the revocation of
to establish the ribbon

-THE COVENTRY RIBBON,” AND RIBBONS FROM ST. ETIENNE.

i • a f'ofiprl with the trade in cheap ribbons among the middle and lov\
Coventry manufacturers have combiaed with excellence they have surpassed all foreign com-

Cl 7 t eS; “leLforeTy^ave paid'little attention to originality of design, and a tendency to copy or
recomhine “ « still prevails ; hut the establishment of the Government School of Design in 184
has already done much to remove this stigma from the town, and the exquisite ribbon now engraved winch

is entirely of local origin, both in design and execution, may be regarded as a happy omen 01 m u me.

^ splendid article, which has been worthily denominated tke “Coventry R.bbon,” was produced as a

specimen, of the capabilities of the local trade, rather than ot its general production. ts P^J
managed by a committee of the principal manufacturers, the most active member of the commit ee fc
Mr Charles Bray, whose establishment is one of the most important in Coventry. lie suggested, as the ide
of the pattern, a wreath of flowers in a handful of natural grasses; and that idea was tastefully carried ou
bv the designer, Mr. T. Clark, a young man under twenty-one years of age, a pupil in the Government bchoo
of Design in the town. The draughtsman, or “putter on,” was Mr. Robert Barton, who, m this essential
department, manifested great ability. The number of cards employed was 10,000, and cost, with the^cha mg,
150/. The number of shoots, or weft threads, to the inch was 500, and the number of cords -400 Nine

shuttles were employed in weaving this admirable specimen of the art, and not more than two am a ia
yards could be woven in a week, in a single hand, or one-shuttle loom. All that could be made m six mont is
was sold to Messrs. Morrison, Dillon, and Co., of Fore Street, London, for 30,. a yard,-more than double the

price ever realised by any ribbon before in this country.

We have added to our illustration of the Coventry Ribbon two agreeable specimens of those produced m

France at that great depot of the manufacture, St. Etienne. It was a lively subject of comment, on the part
of many of the French visitors to London during the summer of 1851, that of all their staple productions the
one least favourably represented in the Great Exhibition appeared to be that of the ribbon trade of St.. Etienne.
M Blanqui, in his interesting “ Lett res sur Imposition Universelle de Lo.ulres,” lias addressed a serious
remonstrance to the manufacturers of that district on their want of activity on this important occasion,
reproaching them with allowing the merchants of Basle and of Zurich, as well as those of England, to have
received numerous orders which, with proper exertions, they might themselves have obtained.

The head-quarters of the French ribbon manufacture are in the towns of St. Etienne and St. diamond.
In those districts, its greatest developeme.it in the early history of the silk trade has been dated from the
year 1600 to 1680, at which latter period the number of looms employed amounted to no less than 10,000.
We learn from the Report on the French Exposition of 1844, that “the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes,
in banishing the industrial genius of France, materially affected the ribbon trade in that country, which from
that period had to sustain a vigorous competition with the fabrics of Basle. From 1/00 to 1/60 it struggled
on against difficulties, and it was only towards the latter year that the manufacture received a new develope-
ment°by the exertions of the well-known house of Dugas, freres, of St. diamond, who imported from Basle,
and distributed throughout the various manufactories, mechanical looms, called looms a la Xurichoise, and now'

well known as looms a la Barrel

In the year 1788, when the long-continued patronage of the court and nobility had raised the manufacture
of ribbons to its highest pitch of perfection, the number of looms employed in every department of the trade
amounted to 15,000. In the year 1800, in consequence of the political troubles and the war, that number had
declined to 13,800; and it does not appear that it ever, under the Empire, exceeded 13,850. At the present
time the number may, without exaggeration, be estimated at least at 20,000.

It is well known that much of the celebrity which the ribbons of St. Etienne have obtained throughout
Europe is due to the artistic education which the French manufacturers have always been so careful to give
to the designers whose talents have worthily maintained the reputation of their productions.

O -A- E Si .

IVVA

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PLATE L\t.

CRADLE

IN MARBLE, BY DE BAY OF PARIS.

The peculiar organisation which usually accompanies the artistic temperament is one of excessive
susceptibility. That very aptitude to receive impressions from external nature, which the heaven-born artist
invariably possesses, too frequently renders him a prey to intense nervous sensibility, and makes his life one
continued excitement,—fluctuating between excessive gaiety and enjoyment on the one hand,—and deep
despondency or constant irritability on the other. In spite of his proverbial defects of character, many of
which arise from the peculiar organisation to which we have referred, the artist has rarely failed to interest
and attract, scarcely less in his person than in his works. Ilimself expansive and inclined to love, he rarely
fails to secure the affection of his friends; and in all the history of art, we flncl constantly that the greatest
masters have been either surrounded by troops of friends, if their inclination led them into society, or worshipped
by some tender soul in private, if their habits were of a more domestic character. Artistic friendships partake
more of the nature of love than is common in the relations of affection which usually obtain between less keenly-
strung mortals; and hence the feeling of clique and partisanship which is proverbial among the race. Strong
when excited, but almost a child in matters irrespective ot his feelings, the artist stands in peculiar need of a
friend to sustain his wavering spirits when oppressed,—to regulate his enthusiasm when overjoyed. Such a
friend most great masters have had, and most living artists do possess; and such is M. de Sengnon, the
celebrated portrait-painter of Paris, to Auguste de Bay, the sculptor of the exquisite group we engrave.

The ties which unite those kindred souls are of the most intimate description, and we consider ourselves
eminently fortunate in being able to present our readers with a memoir of the one written by the other. To
that short notice we shall presume to add neither note nor comment, but shall only premise our translation
by observing, that when troubles overtook De Bay, in the course of those revolutions which have brought such
misery on so many of the finest artists of France, de Serignon assisted his friend in every way, taking upon
himself to guarantee the expenses of the execution of the group we engrave in marble, under the peculiar
circumstances about to be related, and before the model had been seen by any other than himsel .

original of this group he is now the worthy posse^soi.

M. de Serignon thus sketches the biography of his friend. “Auguste de Bay,” says he, possesses one

of those rare organisations, the peculiarities of which assert themselves from the tenderest childhood. Hus
artistic instinct and studious character found in his own family the most favourable elements ot edu^ton. *
the son of M. Jean Baptiste de Bay, a sculptor of great merit, his precocious genius was nuitu.ed as

. . ,, mlwt r „.. eful instructions of a description admirably fitted to secure him a

were, from the very cradle, by the most caietui msuutuu ,, „ M .

,ii i .,rti=ts who belonged to the friendly circle of the eldei M. de Bay,
brilliant career. Among the celebrated a! lists wno ouoiuc . , • , tn Wom _

™ the illustrious Bar.,, Guos, who, being struck with the rf K»* **«*

hi, master Untie the direction of this get painter our student, in . few ,er,, gamed ever, .c.deunc

distinction: A, the ugc of eighfeeu he terminated hi, studies, und crowed hi, scholastic success by carry,,,g

off the fraud prise of painting, which enabled him to visit Rome, where he remained seven )«„,

s ... Tf v ; t f] )a ( we have occasion to speak of the first puze toi paintm 0 ,

“ But the question naturally arises, liow is it tnat. 1

THE FIRST CRADLE.

when we are treating of the author of this admirable statue, ‘ The First Cradle ? 5 It is the fact, however, that
historical painting was for a long time the only subject of Auguste de Bay's labours ; and if at a later period
the manipulation of the chisel became suddenly familiar to him, it was because the severity of his studies from
nature had predisposed, and in some sort initiated, him into the secrets of the art of Phidias, and that confinement
to one art alone offered too narrow a field for the fertility of his genius. In giving himself up to his vocation,
he could not be satisfied with animating his canvass; he required also to give life to the stubborn marble. In
the same manner as the Muses are sisters, so do the Fine Arts hold each other by the hand; nor is this the
first time they have been seen associated in the same high degree in the person of one artist. Of this the
history of art affords some rare examples. The one under our notice carries our thoughts back to the divine
Michael Angelo, and can we help asking if Auguste de Bay has not caught from his example an extra ray of

genius ?

“At the period of his return from Italy, our artist was still only a painter. He brought with him a
picture, which hangs, with credit to its painter, in the National Gallery of the palace of the Luxembourg at
Paris. For some time he continued to practise his art with success, and several of his works in the museum
of Versailles display the power of his talents.

“ Living with his father, whose skilful chisel was continually producing some new chef-d'oeuvre , and following
with a lively interest the works of his elder brother, a sculptor also of considerable merit, Auguste de Bay
perceived the germ of his future talent developing itself within him. While enjoying the retired and tranquil
life to which he was deeply attached, he had numerous opportunities of witnessing the animation of marble

and of bronze beneath the sculptor’s hand; and, stirred by such examples, he at length felt within himself,

‘ anche io son ’ scultore.’

“ Nor was he deceived in this belief. Some leisure moments having enabled him to put into form a model

of the subject he had imagined, the clay, obedient to his inspiration, soon revealed in the most beautiful shape
the idea of the artist.

“Thus was originated the charming group to which he has given the name of ‘The First Cradle.’

“ We see Eve > tlle mother of the human race, holding to her bosom, and in her arms, with which

she forms a cradle for her two children, Cain and Abel sleeping. Her head is bowed over them, and her

look of love falls upon them. She seems as though she could already perceive some faint indication of

the different feelings which, in despite of sleep, betray themselves in the instinctive movements of her children.

In blissful ignorance of the future, she sees no crime,—she perceives no virtue,—she has but one sentiment,

the first and most natural feeling of woman, that of maternal affection. Cain sleeps; but in his unquiet

slumbers his hand repulses his brother, whom he seems to feel too near to him: this action, and the

expression of his features, already reveal the nature of his cruel instinct. His brother Abel reposes in the

pure sleep of innocence; he appears an angel in the cradle. Upon the sides of the base the author has

engraved, in bas-relief, the fatal tree of knowledge; the offering of Abel accepted by the Creator, that of

Cam refused; and, upon the front, the fratricidal murder. Thus have we a summary of this first terrible

page of the history of the human race. No subject could be more fit for sculpture, nor could it have

been expressed in a more perfect manner. The whole group bears a touching aspect of grace, melancholy,
and mystery.

The laws of the most rigorous modesty have been observed, and inspire respect. The naked figure has
been treated with that severity of style which the representation of the purest beauty emanating from the
hands of the Creator required. Auguste de Bay, in triumphing over the first difficulty of the art, that of
putting his idea clearly into form in a composition at once happy and essentially appropriate to sculpture,
iccame at once and unquestionably an eminent sculptor. To complete his conquest he had yet to overcome
the difficulties incidental to procuring expression in marble,—that hard and unyielding material which seems
to refuse to be animated,-that inert mass, which yields only to the exertions of a patient genius, and denies

| 6 ° tl0 * e , tuflmg aud colnmon place inspirations which a pure and severe taste have not refined. One of

ie most perfect blocks of Carrara marble procurable was submitted to his rapid and intelligent chisel, and in
the space of less than a year came forth a chef-d’oeuvre destined henceforth for posterity.

' ^ unanimous appioval at the Exposition of Paris, 1844; a success which received a

ye more solemn consecration at the universal Exhibition of London in 1851, where it contributed worthily
and with dignity to uphold the glory of French art.’’ *

n K * f 02

; "A "V.'-.-J • • ■ ' .(V ; . »• »v

PLATE LXII.

WOOD-CARVING,

BY WALLIS OF LOUTH

In examining a beautiful work of modern art, and remembering the earliest attempts to produce a similar
object, it is difficult to recognise any connexion between the two. That such connexion exists is, however,
most certain; since it is only by the various steps of progression which link the works of one generation to
those ot its successor, and by the gradual accumulation of improvements thus introduced in a long course of
years, that the precise form of the most perfect artistic productions has been determined. We conceive, there¬
fore, that our best illustration of the objects we engrave must frequently consist in an endeavour to trace the

successive changes which have taken place in the various arts which they exemplify, and on the traditions of

which their specific form and execution is more or less dependent. Thus in the beautiful group of flowers and
birds, so admirably carved in lime by Mr. Wallis of Louth, we trace the immediate operation of the talent of
Grinling Gibbons. From the works of this latter master, the mind naturally recurs to those earlier examples of
graceful execution, of arms, of fruit, of flowers, strapwork, shells, and other objects, which form such important
features in buildings of the Elizabethan period; whilst the dependence of these, in point of style, upon the
exquisite carvings of the Gothic period, carries us yet further back to the earliest stages of the art.

We propose, therefore, in the present article to give a brief and rapid sketch of the art of wood-carving,
as applied to ecclesiastical uses in this country from its earlier days; and in subsequent papers we shall notice
other branches of the subject, and probably advert to the peculiarities of contemporary schools in other countries.

The remains of early timber-work in this country are so feAv, that until we arrive at what in architecture
is called the Early English period, we cannot trace with certainty the progress of wood-carving. In a country
so rich in timber, however, there can be no doubt that, even in the Anglo-Saxon era, much decoration of
this kind was applied to furniture and buildings. From the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries, the churches
of England displayed the highest skill and refinement in the ornaments applied to their roofs, screens, rood-
lofts, stalls, doors, and other members ; and the more these are studied the more we must admire the artistic

feeling and manipulative skill of our ancient catveis in noocl.

It has been well observed,* that “a timber roof of the fifteenth century, with its massive timbers,
elaborately wrought and moulded, its rows of hammer-beams, terminating in beautifully carved figures of angels,
its enriched panelling and traceried spandrels, its exquisite bosses, and, above all, its profusely ornamented
cornice, is truly as glorious a sight as it is a grand triumph of art.” Adverting more particularly to the
timber-framed roofs of ancient churches, it may be observed, that the early examples were almost exclusively
tie-beam roofs; but, although occasionally retained to a very late period, as a general rule, the tie-beam was
early dispensed with, leaving the inner surface of the roof exposed, and thus affording an opportunity for the
richest decoration. In the church of Old Shoreham there is a tie-beam having the dog-tooth moulding, the foot
of the kin-post being formed into the base of a column of the period,—transitional from Norman to Early
English °In the decorated period much ornament was introduced, the main timbers springing from a rich

In Messrs. Brandon's “Analysis of Gothic Architecture.”

WOOD-CARVING.

cornice, or from corbels of varied design. The main surface was formed into panels by moulded ribs, with
carved bosses at their intersections; and when the hammer-beam system (peculiarly English in its nature) was
adopted, the ends of those beams were formed into figures of angels, the spandrels of the braces being filled
with exquisite tracery. The finest church roofs of this era are to be found in Lincolnshire, Norfolk, and
Suffolk,—especially in the church of St. Mary, Bury; and those of Woolpit and Grundisburg, Suffolk. The
latter* is a double hammer-beam roof, all the ends of the beams, and even the king-posts, forming figures of
angels; and the effect of this heavenly host, leaning forward from their airy height, is grand and solemn
beyond description. “These carvings,” observes Mr. Pugin,f “had a mystical and appropriate meaning. They
usually represented angels, archangels, and various orders of the heavenly hierarchy, hovering over the con-
giegated faithful; while the spaces between the rafters were painted azure, and powdered with stars and other
celestial emblems,—a beautiful figure of the firmament. Some of these angels held shields charged with the
instruments of the Passion, the Holy Name, and other emblems ; and others, labels with devout Scriptures.”
the churches of Wymondham, Long Melford, St. Peter’s, and All Saints, Norwich; St. Mary’s, Devizes; and
many others, present fine examples of this description; the whole of them having been, not only elaborately
caned, but richly painted and gilt. As Messrs. Brandon truly observe, “none other than our own oak-bearing
land can boast of roofs such as those that abound with us, either in beauty or boldness of execution.”t

Next in importance to the roofs are the screens of ancient churches. As Mr. Pugin observes,§ every
parochial church, small or great, had, in mediaeval times, at least a chancel-screen, either of metal, stone, or
wood, and often others to the side-chapels and other parts of the structure. Their employment, indeed, may
be universally traced from the Saxon times down to late in the sixteenth centuryeven subsequently to the
Reformation. “There is no country in Christendom,” Mr. Pugin remarks, “where so many screens are still
standing as m England.” Our cathedrals abound with examples, both in stone and wood; and the profusion of
the carving bestowed upon the wooden screens of our parochial churches strikingly attests the talent of the
medieval artists. Whether a simple screen, or supporting a rood-loft, the chancel-screen was always highly
enriched; the lower panels with painted figures of saints, apostles, and martyrs, on gold and diapered grounds,
the upper portion perforated in the most exquisite traceried designs, and the cornice covered with beautiful
foliage and inscriptions. The “ holyrood,” with its attendant “imagines,” was itself the subject of most lavish
decoration. Norfolk, Suffolk, and Lincolnshire, possess screens as elaborate as their roofs; and those of
Cambridgeshire, Devonshire, Lancashire, and parts of Wales, have almost equal claims to notice.

lhe stalls of large churches, with their accompanying misereres, supplied a fertile field for carved decoration,
lhe former, surmounted by overhanging canopies and tabernacle work, demonstrate the perfection of the art;
whilst m the latter the artist seems to have revelled, free from the trammels of ecclesiastic rule, mingling in
the strangest manner the most graceful foliated designs with the most grotesque, and, in some cases, the most
profane devices. Human figures of every grade, costume, and occupation, animals and monsters of all kinds,
displaying the most vivid and teeming imagination, abound in these curious carvings; and the freedom and
boldness of their execution have certainly rarely, if ever, been surpassed.

The doors of churches in the decorated and perpendicular styles were carved in harmony with the
architecture of those periods, || and the ends of the pews, or open seats, were panelled, and elaborately
ornamented. The later examples rose with an ogee curve, and terminated in finials, or “poppy-heads,” as

infinitely dh ei sified in form, and as admirable in their execution, as were the misereres. “ The Church of

■St. Mary Stratton, Norfolk, alone furnishes us with nearly one hundred distinct patterns; nor is this a
solitary case.” The riches of parochial churches, in the possession of decorations in beautifully-carved wood
have been admirably illustrated of late years by the researches and artistic ability of Messrs. T. T. Bury,
Orlando Jewitt, P. H. Delamotte, R. W. Billings, and many others

. „ n! hat p'- m . ^ tssls - ^ ran( ' on s Analysis,” which contains an able essay, and numerous engravings of ancient wood-work.

t True Principles of Gothic Architecture.”

excellent f 1 t $ ^ m P* n g suc h roofs in modern church architecture, was greatly stimulated, if not awakened, by an

excellent article upon the subject of open roofs, written by the Rev. T. Mode* and published in the "British Critic Review”

$ in Ins work on Screens.

|| See that of Stoke Church, Suffolk (a fine example), engraved in Brandon's “ Analysis.”

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SIDE OF A DOOM

BY JOHN THOMAS OF LONDON

Altiioi g i i the apartments ot our richest millionaires rarely exhibit a degree of splendour in decoration
at all 1 ix allin<> those of the rich salons ot Paris, it may he questioned whether, in quiet excellence, many
English intciiois aie not much more agreeable. They are, at least, more consistent with that disinclination to
display which lorms so essential an ingredient in the national character.

Ot late years great progress has been made in this department of art, as compared with the decorations

which predominated during the reigns of our last sovereign and his predecessor. In point of expense, how¬
ever, we much doubt whether even the most elaborate modern enrichments approach to that which was

commonly bestowed upon the decoration of the principal apartments of mansions erected in the reigns of
the earlier Georges, when joiners’ work triumphed in every part, when every moulding, on doors, skirtings,
shutters, and dados, was enriched by elaborate carving, and when a profusion of hand-worked stucco decorated
the ceilings.

In the application of ornamental modelling to architecture, a great advancement has been made within

the last few years, and modern Gothic works especially are greatly indebted to the important labours which

have been carried on under the superintendence of such men as Mr. Thomas (the author of the beautiful
design we now engrave), Mr. Myers, and some others, who may be said, in fact, to have formed a new school
of carvers both in wood and stone.

Mr. Thomas has attained a high degree of distinction as a sculptor, and a large amount of pro¬

fitable employment, solely by his own persevering and well-directed efforts. From information with which
he has kindly favoured us, we are gratified to be able to narrate a few of the incidents of his honourable
career.

This artist was born in 1813, at Clialford, in Gloucestershire, and in his twelfth year was apprenticed to

a stonecutter at Stromhvater, in the same county. He was soon afterwards left an orphan, and with means

inadequate for his subsistence. Even at this early age Mr. Thomas seems to have acquired those habits ot
industry and perseverance which lead to success, and also, though in a humble degree, much varied artistic
knowledge; for, to provide himself with necessary comforts, he laboured assiduously at night in painting sign¬
boards and engraving brass plates, for a very small remuneration. During the last year ot his appienticeship
he walked to Oxford, in the depth of winter, with but a few shillings in his pocket; and fioin that journey
he imbibed a love for the ornamental work of the mediaeval sculptors, and a determination to excel in it.

On the completion of his apprenticeship, Mr. Thomas resided tor a short time with his brother, who
was in practice as an architect at Birmingham. Having executed a large Gothic monument, with some other
works of the same class, the ability they displayed attracted the attention of Su Chailcs Bany, ^\ho was
then emmo-ed on Kino- Edward’s Grammar School at Birmingham ; and who at once employed him to execute
the whole of the sculptured decorations with which that edifice abounds. From this time the path of the
youno- artist was freed from difficulties. lie executed many works under Mr. Blore at different mansions
in Cheshire, and was also employed at the various stations on the North Midland Railway.

SIDE OF A ROOM, BY ,)OIL\ THOMAS.

The crowning event of his career, however, was his engagement with Sir C. Barry to undertake the whole
management of the sculptured decorations of the Palace of Westminster, which arduous task he accordingly
commenced on the 9th of November, 1841; and in the prosecution of which the modelling and carving of the
whole of the ornaments, as well as the innumerable statues in stone which decorate so profusely that magni¬
ficent. fabric, have received the constant benefits of his artistic taste, and in many cases of his mani¬
pulative ability as well. Notwithstanding the restrictions imposed by the conventionalities essential to the
style adopted, these works display a variety and freedom which indicate the fine feeling of Mr. Thomas for
the breadth and grandeur of nature. His design and specimen for the wood carving of the Palace of West¬
minster was highly approved by the Royal Commissioners, and he was one of the nine sculptors to each of
whom was entrusted the execution of two statues for the interior of the House of Lords.

It would be difficult to enumerate all the varied works which Mr. Thomas has produced. To a
few, however, we are enabled to direct attention. On the occasion of his employment by Mr. Peto, M.P.,
to rebuild his Flail at Somerleyton, in Suffolk, he not only successfully carried out the building itself, but the
sculpture, fountains, chimneypieces, and decorations, and the furniture of the dining-hall. In like manner he
is now engaged at Preston Hall, in Kent, the seat of E. L. Betts, Escp, and the admirable taste which
characterises his designs for interior decoration require no other testimony than that afforded by the “ Side
of a Room/ which forms the subject of our present illustration.

It is only since 1844, when Mr. Thomas first exhibited at the Royal Academy, that he has turned his
attention to ideal sculpture; but he has already executed several beautiful works in marble, including a group
of Britannia, Science, and Industry, together with several basso-relievos, in the Great Room at the Euston
Station; and basso-relievos of Peace and War, in Buckingham Palace, executed for His Royal Highness Prince
Albert. He is now engaged upon two marble statues of “Night” and “Musidora.”

Me may swell our still imperfect list of his productions by the following successful works:—the colossal
Lions on the Biitannia Biidge; life-sized figures, in oak, in the new Hall in Lincoln’s Inn; statues for the new
Law Courts at Bristol; sculpture for the Bank and Exchange Buildings, Glasgow, and the Imperial Fire
Office, London; monuments to Hi. Arnold of Rugby", and many others. He has also in progress the sculpture
for the new hotel at the Paddington Station of the Great At estern Railway; and a colossal sculptural fountain
for the Earl of Carlisle. AYe may conclude our narrative of perseverance and success by statin°\ in his own
words, that Mr. Thomas has never studied under any master, nor attended any drawing or modelling
school.” The infinite energy and labour he has been compelled to exert to compensate for these disadvantages
of cii cumstance, should make all whose means enable them to enjoy r such assistance deeply conscious of its

value,—as assisting them to master, at least the preliminary difficulties, that beset the attempts of every
beginner in art.

In carrying into effect his designs for decoration, Air. Thomas has been materially assisted by the ability
of his friend Air. Aloxon; whose talent, not only as a successful imitator of various woods and marbles,
but as a skilful and tasteful designer of marqueterie and mosaic-work, must have been at once appreciated by
ever\ one who studied those departments of art as represented at the Great Exhibition.

PLAT

#• ^(1 ft

r / '

r -.

■■Tv •

PORT 1 ERLS OF PRINTED MOHAIR B'V EES AND C

> l

N D 0 N

MA\ V

' N MINTED $• ° U B St-E

85Z BV

V S SON

P'h e r s

ll EE N

PLATE LX1V.

PORTIERES OF PRINTED MOHAIR,

BY R. LEES AND CO. OF LONDON.

We have already, in our notices of the shawls of Cashmere, indicated the commercial value and

importance of the soft wool of the goat of that portion of the world; and in considering the fabric known

as mohair, we have now to describe the wool of another species of goat, which is indigenous to the district
of Angora in Asia Minor.

Mohair is literally the hair of this animal, though the term is applied to articles manufactured from it.

The most complete account of the nature and habits of the Angora goat, and the manufacture of its

fleece, is to he found in a valuable paper written by Captain Conolly, and read before the Asiatic Society in
January 18-10* The author observes that “the long-famed goat, peculiar to the province of Angora and
certain adjoining districts, is invariably white; and its coat is of one sort, namely, a silky hair, which hangs
in long curly locks.” lie further states that the fleece of this goat is called “Tiftik,” which is the Turkish
word for goats' hair; in contradistinction to i/wt or japak, which signifies sheeps wool. Unlike that of the
Cashmere goat, the whole fleece of the Angora species is available for the manufacture, without any separation

of the hair from the dovvn.f That of the female is considered to be the best.

The yarn is spun by the women of Angora, who attach much importance to a habit of moistening each
tuft of wool with their saliva, before they draw it from the distaff; asserting that yarn spun during the
season in which their principal food consists of the melon, is far superior to that spun at other times. It
will be remembered that steeping in riee-watcr is an important part of the manufacture of Cashmere wool;
and besides the moistening process above-described, the yarn of Angora is again well saturated with a glutinous
liquor, called chirisli, which is prepared from a small root; and this operation is equally curious with the former.
The large hanks of yarn being extended in a frame, “ two men walk up and down the sides of it, holding
bowls' of chirish liquor, made into a thin yellow mucilage. Of this they continually blow out mouthfuls, in
alternate showers all over the yarn-ip^,- while others follow them to press the threads together for a

moment, and then to change their position relative to each other by means of sliding cross-bars, so that all

may be equally moistened.”

' The women of Angora are so skilful in knitting gloves and socks from the tiftik yarn, as to have
excited the astonishment of English manufacturers. Some socks are made so fine as to cost one hundred

piastres (about 20s.) the pair. , . , 7 ... .

1 . tw “the cloths woven from tiftik at Angora are of two kinds, shalh and

Captain Com. > m manufacture of there is confined to men. Tire weaver sits with nearly

..jfi, or toil c, am I 1 “ ' ‘ llt works two or four treadles with his feet, according

half .this hod, » . ™»" 1***^ p„. t of lhi> is ««d to the ttoor before him, and the

a, he wishes to make flam ot ta« 1 tin wort a piece of thirty fib. or rather

rest is suspended nearly over it bom tne ceum 0 .

, „ . Soclctv all d is also largely quoted in a useful and elaborate work on “The Rise, Progress, and

* It is printed in the 1 ransactmn^ > ^ ^u\avk& on the use of Alpaca, Angora, and Cashmere Goats’ Wool. By Thomas Southey.

Present State of Colonial Sheep anti Wools, em

f See our notice of Plate XLYIll.

8 vo. 1852.

PORTIERES OF PRINTED .MOHAIR.

more than twenty-one yards, for a sum which varies, according to the texture required, from fifteen up to
one hundred piastres; and by working steadily he may finish a piece of this regular measure in six days.”

m stu s are died at Angora, either in the yarn or in the piece; in the latter case the colour is 'less

substances "® imp ° rted ^ 8a ^ m and Constantinople, in addition to some local vegetable

Before the Greek revolution there was a prohibition against the export of tiftik from Turkey, except

when wrought, or m the form of iplik, or yarn. In the days of its greatest prosperity, the town of Angora,
ie chief, if no. the only town m which weaving is carried on,—contained 1200 looms. There was at that

71 TVT “ f °V he ^ materfal hl - -n » -20 the hair only piXI^ ^

lb. m England, where its value was not duly appreciated. It has since, however, gradually risen in estimation

and deinand, and the ordinary price for many years has been 18, per lb. Permission'is now

A m Turkish Government to export raw tiftik, and as the European manufacturers readily avail themselves

o . , ie weaving carried on at Angora has greatly diminished. There are now only about fifty looms in the

rennircd Rf , t , , , . 1000 or l.aOO pieces annually, instead of 20,000, which were formerly

nr “ ty,hos “ ffered - ihc ^ «% - ■»—

1 effect of the pei mission to export the raw material is strikingly shown by the following statistics

Z? zrzzz^ f,om "v Mei. i.

■ ■ lm Cclmlmopl. were 538 b.te of moh.ir y„, , nd 385 , of wool bu ,

b yarn were exported, while fhe w„l expend had bcr^ed to 5538 hate. 1„ ,83! ,h, (|U „„i,

mohan, 01 goats wool, brought into Emdand was 331 65s lh- ti ■ ... -

as will be seen bv the fnll • « ° ’ b llus Tmntity has since enormously increased,

ne seen by the following figuresQuantity imported.

In 18.38 . . 942,770 lbs.

18-14 . . 1,290,771 „

—46 . . 1,287,320 „

Ill 1848

1850

1851

• 1,165,368 lhs.

• 2,800,250 „

• 2,124,600 „

Emdand °f m ° h,Ur fr ° m Mtive im P orted Principally from Smyrna, has been carried on in

, PWardS 01 a centul T> chiefly in the production of camlets and other expensive stuffs “These
camlets,’ observes Mr. M‘Culloch* “are manufactured on a loom with two treadles as in . aT Tb
of various colours and sorts. Some are wliollv «f <™t*> i ■ , • , a,e ' 1 he y are

half hair and half silk- whilst 7 \ ^ ^ ^ in ° thers the ™P « of hair and the weft

thread. They are made’both 17 7 77 ° f ^ ^ or “ potion with cotton

made from mohair, and woven wiiitTmid Cd 7 ^7” “ ^ Mr. Southey,f «are also

distingmshes this kind of manufacture’is the effect H Tlprol ^ ^

lhe manufacture was, however until wltViin f

mohair plush- used almost exch ’if PaSt ’ C Uefly confined to an article called

....og,, who„ Cl0 '“” S ' - " •sricnltur. 1 ,.bearers,

proverbially popuL. ’ ^ -are lo„ S rendered il

A complete revolution in the manufacture has, however been effected w «

^ ”«> Co. one of whose recent nnprove.neni. w n " Z ’ "T - *—

chiefly directed to the advancement of the proems of printin' „„

brought to the highest pitch of perfection. Finding that this material t , Y W D ° W

holds, and throws out the colours imparted to it with a beauty 1 1 ’ u° ^ °" n W ° rdS ’ “ receive8 >

and that its cleanliness and durability are very great” thev'aunli’l' '7 *7 ”' tate ' ^ ^ fabric ’

Gillett and Lees) to the production of Utrecht velvet ' which had' n„T 7 7' 1830 (Undel ’ ^ fi ‘' m ° f
which is now in extensive demand. ’ ° r6 660 made in England, but

inJZx'z z.::::;* ***• ° f ^ ^ cover.

portieres en.rav^Z h , **. » » exeeniion. The

Swaisland, of Crayford, from the desi7 o" Mr 7g 'T ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

° Mk J ' G ' Crace > by means of no less than 268 blocks.

f dictionary oi‘ Commerce.”

t “ Treatise on Sheep,” 8vo. 1810.

PL. AT r 65

PI,ATE LXV.

IN CARTON

BY CRUCHET OF PARIS.

"Inch accompanied Plate L., we took occasion to trace the progress of cinque-cento art.
as illustrated by the ornamental sculpture of Italy.

In examining the productions of the period of the Renaissance in France, their coincidence of style with
lose o taly is very striking. The profuse decoration of the celebrated chateaux of the period of Francis
the Fust, doubtless denied much ot its character from those Italian artists who led the movement of the
revival of taste m France; such as Primaticcio, Rossi, Benvenuto Cellini, Niccolo dell’ Abbate, Girolamo
della Robbia, and others; but the genius of the French nation manifested itself in a truly independent form

m the peFSOnS 0f the eminent artists > Je£ * Goujon, Pierre Lescot, Philibert de Lorme, and Germain Pilon.
The creations of those master-minds have long served as models to French designers; and although their
beauties were neglected m the foggy atmosphere of the rocaille and baroeque styles of Louis XIV. and XV.,
still m later days and during the present century the admiration of the most intelligent connoisseurs has been
excited by the happy imitations of Renaissance ornament, which have from time to time proceeded from the
ateliers of the most tasteful architects and the workshops of the most skilful manufacturers.

This renewed popularity of Renaissance ornament may be regarded as due to two principal causes—namely,
the facility with which the stone of Paris may be carved into arabesques and foliage for exterior purposes,
and the low price at which, by the employment of plastic materials, the richness of the old salons of Henri II.
and Diana of Poictiers may be reproduced in the apartments of the aristocracy and the bourgeoisie of Paris.
No material has perhaps contributed more essentially to this result, than that in which the object we engrave
has been executed, arid we now propose to offer a few observations on the history of its manufacture in
France, only premising that the firm by which this graceful pilaster has been produced is as well known for
the talent of the artists it employs to design and model, as for its excellence in mechanical execution. In
1839 Messrs. Cruchet obtained a bronze medal, and were highly complimented by the jury who decided on
the merit of the productions in the Exposition of that year. In 1849 they again entered the lists, and their
exertions were rewarded with a silver medal.

The application of paper, as a medium for the execution of architectural ornament, is by no means of

recent origin in France. Examples of its use in the sixteenth century may be found. Some of the early

decorations in the interior of the Louvre were made in carton pierre, formed by sheets of paper moistened
with paste, laid one upon the other and pressed and rubbed into hollow moulds. The grand trophies and
heraldic embellishments which decorate the vault ol the ceiling of the Hall of Council of Henri II. were also
in this material, as well as the ornaments of the choir of St. Germain TAuxerrois, and the Hotel des Femes.

All these works were executed in the primitive manner we have described; but it is not to he imagined

that so rude and laborious a method of working was long retained. The principal improvement in the manu¬
facture was introduced by a sculptor of the name of Meziere, and carried out by his successor, M. Hire, who
was likewise a sculptor. This improvement consisted in reducing the paper to a pulp, mixing it with plaster
and size, and then pressing it into hollow moulds. Ibis pulp contained within itself a cementitious element,

PILASTER IN CARTON PIERRE.

superseding the necessity for employing flour-paste, which had been used before to unite the successive sheets
of paper Since the days of Meziere and Hire, M. Romagnesi, an ornamental sculptor of great talent, has
succeeded in developing to its highest extent the capabilities of carton pierre. The substance manufactured
before his introduction to the business was so coarse in texture as to require covering with several coats of
fine plaster, which again had to be cleaned up and sharpened by hand with cutting and scraping-tools, before
gildino- could be applied to it. M. Romagnesi, however, succeeded in reducing the pulp to so fine a state,
that it became susceptible of rendering the finest lines of the moulder; and the gilder was thus enabled to
apply his leaf at once. By this perfection the quality of the substance was greatly improved, and much
greater economy was attained. The rich interior effect of many of the modern buildings of Paris is largely to
be ascribed to the employment of this material. In the luileries, the Loune, the 1 alais Rojal, the apait
ments of the principal ministers; many churches, and other edifices, a great portion of the architectural enrich¬
ments are executed in carton pierre. Statues, even of considerable dimensions, have been produced m this

substance, the lightness of which is one great recommendation to its use.

In this country we have been little less assiduously at work in effecting improvements in the manufacture.
In papier mache and in carton pierre, as applied to architectural decoration, it would he difficult to excel the
productions, either of Messrs. Jackson or of Messrs. Bielefeld; while in the application of the substance to
minor articles of furniture and decoration, in combination with the processes of japanning and inlaying, the
works of Jennens and Bettridge, Lane, and M'Cullum and Hodgson of Birmingham, Walton of Wolverhampton,

and Clay of London, leave little to he desired.

From an early period small objects, bonbonnieres, etui cases, &c., have been made on the Continent in papier
mache; but it appears probable, from the accounts given by the French themselves, that the application of
paper to architectural decoration was, if not of earlier introduction, at least more generally employed in England

than in France.

In an essay “ On the Use of the improved Papier Mache in the interior Decorations of Buildings and in
Works of Art,” Mr. Bielefeld has made some interesting remarks on the decorations which preceded the
employment of that material. lie observes that, “with the Elizabethan style (the Renaissance of England),
rich plaster ceilings were very generally brought into use; and in the more classic, or Italian styles, that
followed, the same material was still more extensively and more boldly employed. As the art advanced,
plaster became partially substituted for carved or panelled wood-wainscoting on walls. Both in that situation,
and upon ceilings, foliage of the highest relief, and of the richest character, may at the present day be found
in the more important edifices remaining of the seventeenth and beginning ot the eighteenth centuries. These
enrichments were generally worked, or rather modelled, by hand upon the stucco in its place, whilst still m
a soft and plastic state.

“ As this work had to be done on the spot, and with much rapidity of execution, in order to prevent
the stucco from setting before it had acquired the intended form, the art was somewhat difficult. The work¬
man had to design almost as he worked; therefore, to do it well, it was necessary that he should have some
of the acquirements and qualities of an artist. This circumstance, of course, tended very much to limit the
number of workmen, and their pay became proportionably large.

“ It w as no unnatural consequence that artisans thus circumstanced assumed a consequence that belonged
not to their humble rank in life; it is said that they might have been seen coming to their work girt with
swords, and having their wrists adorned with laced ruffles. Such a state of things was, as may be conceived,
attended with many inconveniences to their employers ; it v r as scarcely possible to preserve that subordination
so essentially necessary in carrying on the business of a builder, and ultimately the workers in stucco, laying
aside all restraint, combined together to extort from their employers a most inordinate rate of wages. It
would be superfluous here to detail all the circumstances that followed; it is sufficient to state that, as might
have been anticipated, the total ruin of their art w r as the final result of these delusive efforts to promote their
individual interest.

“ Contrivances were resorted to by the masters, which soon supplanted the old mode of working in stucco.
The art of moulding and casting in plaster, as previously practised in France, v r as generally introduced; and
the art of preparing the pulp of paper became improved and extended, so as ultimately to render practicable
the adoption of papier mache in the formation of architectural decorations. Thus, at last, was extinguished
the original mode of producing stucco ornaments ; and there, probably, has not been for many years a single
individual in England accustomed to that business.”

&TE 66

.rr -

lk«5\

Sr-

' >v5fc.*>r&S

V- li I C. t? ' V< V A - T f: | R fc X T

GOLD V A 5 F. . LHRiCHED WITH JEWELS AND t N A M E I S
BY WA1 H ERSTON & 3 R O O D f N OF LONDON

' ttt o r OK D l !*•

L0 * r>0f '> MIA.T10 *N0 PO£.ISHr D jy^, £ *1 „. v/ R v O A V

SON ijiHOOrtiPH - ^roim 0 U t ? s

PLATE LX VI.

GOLD ENAMELLED AND JEWELLED VASE,

BA WATHERSTON AND BUOGDEN OF LONDON.

The production of a magnificent specimen of gold plate is comparatively so great a rarity, that but for
the stimulus afforded by the Great Exhibition, it may be questioned if any work of so ambitious e character
as that which we now engrave would have been executed in England for many years to come. We cannot,
therefore, but commend the energy which led Messrs* Watherston and Brogden to demonstrate as they have
in this production the capability of English goldsmiths and jewellers to create works which, for sumptuous
and delicate execution, may rival those produced at the best periods of the art in Spain and Italy by artists
such as d’Arphes and Cellini.

The gentlemen by whom this vase was exhibited have for many years held a distinguished position as
practical executants of every class of jewellers’ work. Their establishment was originally founded by Mr. John
Brogden, who held the important and honourable office of Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths Company;
and the business, after passing through two generations, maintains in its fullest integrity the reputation he
originally acquired for it. Mr. James II. Watherston, the present head of the firm, is veil known to those
goldsmiths connected with the important office of verifying the quality and weight of the coin of the realm,
from his publications on the subject. Ilis elaborate “ tables showing the legally-appointed weight ol gold
and silver coins pursuant to Mint indenture, constructed for the use of the Goldsmiths composing the Jui} of
the Pix,” are accepted and constantly used. His “Gold \ aluer is a more popular, though not less caiefully

constructed, little work.

The circumstances connected with the production of the beautiful vase now before our readers are of
an interesting nature. Mr. Alfred Brown, its designer, had been in his youth most kindly assisted by Mr.
Watherston, who had contributed to place him in the position which he now so honourably fills in the
establishment of Messrs. Hunt and Roskell. In his studies at the Royal Academy, Mr. Brown succeeded in
gaining all the honorary medals. An occasion presented itself in the Great Exhibition of 1851, when the
exercise of the artist’s talents appeared likely to render an essential sendee to his old friend and patron,

and with a praiseworthy feeling he immediately offered to testify his gratitude to Mr. W atherston by devoting

his best energies to his service. He accordingly designed the vase now engraved, which is equally honourable

to the artist and the manufacturers.

Its body and foot are executed in the purest gold, of twenty-two carats fineness, which is equal to that
of o’lihiea -old It weighs ninety-five ounces, and is the largest piece of jewelled and enamelled gold plate
known to have been ever made in this country. The design was only settled in January 1851, and the vase
was so far completed as to be ready for transmission to the Great Exhibition by the 1st of May. W e learn

from the “ Official Descriptive and Illustrated Catalogue ” that “ the group surmounting the cover represents

the United Kin-dom. by the figures of Britannia, Scotia, and Hibernia. Britannia is in the centre, resting
one hand on the trident, Hibernia is on her right, and Scotia on the left. Around the edge of the cup are
four heads symbolical of the quarters of the globe; below these are festoons of diamonds, representing the
rose thistle and shamrock. Surrounding the body of the vase are relievos, representing Britons, Romans,

GOLD ENAMELLED AND JEWELLED VASE.

Saxons, and Normans, with the landing of the Romans, and the battle of Hastings. Beneath are two figures
of Fame, descending with wreaths of laurel, crowning Nelson, Wellington, Milton, Shakspeare, Newton, and
Watt, whose busts are introduced in concaves; while on the lower part of the cup are the figures of
Truth, Prudence, Industry, and Fortitude, accompanied by their appropriate emblems.”

The excellence of English jewellery is by no means a tiling of to-day, as the most cursory examination of
the subject will prove. The torques, armillse, collars, and other decorations, which are constantly exhumed
from the barrows of England, Ireland, and Scotland, display a dexterity of manufacture, rivalling the most
perfect productions of Etruria. The Saxons were celebrated for their metal-works, as the proverbial reputation
of St. Dunstan testifies. In an interesting article on Saxon Jewellery, contributed to the Archseologia by the
Rev. Mr. Pegge, he mentions, quoting the Venerable Bede, that when Gregory the Great despatched Mellitus
Paulinus and others, to assist Augustine in converting the Saxons, they brought with them into England many
sacred vessels, which no doubt served as the primitive types from which the forms of subsequent church-plate
were derived. We find that in the year 700, the travelled Wilfred, who imported many foreign workmen
into England, was in the possession of large quantities of plate and jewels. King Oswald (a.d. 031) is
related by Alcuin to have endowed churches with every variety of goldsmiths’ work. Eddius distinctly
describes costly articles in gold and gems to have been executed by “inclusores gemnarum” or jewellers; and

speaks of them as at that time common and ordinary artificers. Bede mentions that Bishop Benedict brought

workers in glass with him from France, and it is, perhaps, to them that we may owe many improvements in
enamels and factitious gems. The same prelate also imported sacred vessels, and from his time down to the
> ear ^00 w meet with constant accounts of the most princely donations to the treasuries of the monasteries;

the great majority of the component parts of which are described as being made by native workmen. William

of Malmesbuiy states that the solid silver shrine containing the relics of the martyr St. Aldhelm, which were
placed m that receptacle by King Ethehvolf, was decorated with representations of the miracles of the Saint,
executed levctto met alio , i.e., in cliased-work. Whether these incisions w r ere filled with enamel we cannot

tell; but the ring of the monarch, which is so ornamented, and which is now preserved in the British Museum,
clearly demonstrates the use of enamel-pastes at that time,— a.d. 800. The curious ring of Alhstan, bishop
of Sherborne, is of the same period, and bears an enamelled inscription. The “Saxon Chronicle” describes
Alfied as instructing his goldsmiths and all other artificers during the intervals of his more important occu¬
pations. As the art of enamel obtained a firm footing in England, there is no reason to doubt that many

such works mentioned in the inventories of the earlier sovereigns were executed by native workmen.

Duiing the leigns of the Edwards, under the Odos and Fitz Odos, vessels and ornaments of silver, copper,
and gold, were constantly decorated with this elegant embellishment.

From the “Royal Inventories” and “ Household Expenses,” the “ Liberate Rolls,” the “ Mappse Clavicula,”
the “ Histona Eliensis,” and other sources, many curious particulars respecting ancient jewellery may be gleaned.
The Great Seals and Monumental Effigies of English monarchs also illustrate the application of jewellery to
personal ornament. The Wars of the Roses not only impeded the progress of the goldsmith’s art in England

but of necessity caused the destruction of many precious objects. The art subsequently revived, and the

inventoiies of Henry VII. and Henry A III. prove their possession of almost unbounded riches. The quantity
of the precious metals which at that period inundated Spain was not without its effect in this country, and
led to the general adoption of rich personal ornaments and other decorations. This influx of gold and silver
was worthily applied to artistic purposes by the celebrated Holbein, whose designs will ever remain an honour
to the industrial arts of this country. This great artist was born at Basle in 1498. He was introduced
here by the Earl of Arundel, and not only painted the portraits of the English nobility, but decorated their
persons by beautiful articles of bijouterie, a constant succession of which he designed. In the British Museum
is preserved a celebrated volume containing designs by Holbein for these objects. Several of them have been
engraved by Hollar, by Mr. Shaw, and others. It is to be regretted that after the death of Holbein (in 1554)
no \ei\ lemailiable piogiess was made in this art. Under the House of Orange, the English jewellers were
content to follow at a distance the designs of French and Flemish petits mail rex rather than to organise a
st\le foi themselves, and it, is not until within very recent years that any considerable endeavour has been
made to introduce novelty of form into the ordinary objects of the goldsmith’s art.

♦ . I

n a ' k

L.L

tr ; iiRp ttfw

M I N T 0 N

v) T o K K ij P 0 N

R! N

t* - n >

k-Ma ! 0 Till V \ L s

PLATE LXVJI.

LUCA-DELLA-ROBBIA FRIEZES,

BY MINTON OF STOKE-UPON-TRENT.

Ix the year 1850 Air. Minton became the possessor of a terra-cotta frieze which was offered for sale in
London. I he graceful execution of that work attracted the attention of several gentlemen of taste, and par¬
ticularly of the Baron Alarochetti, who expressed his conviction that it had been wrought by the hands of Luca
della Robbia himself. Mr. Minton, having attentively considered the means by which the effect of this object
was produced, conceived that he could successfully imitate the material, and accordingly caused the artists in
his employment to model a variety of objects upon which experiments might be made. The success of those
attempts was manifested by the perfection of the specimens contributed by Air. A1inton to the Great Exhibition.

AA e shall proceed to offer a few remarks on the life and works of the immortal inventor of the material
which has so long borne the name of “ Della-Robbia” ware:—

From the gossiping, but always delightful, biography of Vasari, we gather that Luca della Robbia was

born at Florence in the year 1388, and that on his arriving at the proper age he was apprenticed by his

father, whose name was Simone the son of Alarco, to a certain Leonardo di Ser Giovanni, a goldsmith of
note in the same city, under whose instruction he learned in a short time to draw and model in clay and
wax. At the early age of fifteen years, Luca was taken to Rimini, to work for Sigismondo Alalatesta,
and his labours there gained him the appointment of one of the sculptors to the celebrated Campanile
of Giotto, at Florence. The nature of the subjects he carved there, and their mode of treatment, indicate
how deeply he had drawn for inspiration on classical sources at that comparatively early age. The admi¬
ration these figures obtained induced the cathedral authorities to entrust to him the sculpture of the
celebrated organ-gallery over the door of one of the sacristies, Donatello executing a somewhat similar work
on the opposite side of the church. The date of this event Ahisari places as early as 1405; but Rumohr*
makes it as late as 1438, and apparently -with justice, as he gives a copy of the order by which Luca was
bound to execute the subject. It w r as probably while engaged in the execution of an exquisite bronze for the

same sacristy that he made that discovery which alone would have sufficed to immortalise him. This was,—

that a clay model, baked and covered with a vitreous glaze, became perfectly durable, and might be exposed
to the action of the elements for a length of time without suffering at all. This curious glaze, which remains
to the present day uncraeked, and unchanged in colour or texture, on all his productions, is by Akisari (and
Baldinucei, following him) described to have been composed “ of tin, a kind of fire-clay (used by metal-
founders), antimony, and other metals.”f Both authors agree, that the first work executed by Luca in this
manner was the group of the Resurrection, over the bronze door; and the second, the subject of the Ascension,
over the entrance to the second sacristy in the cathedral at Florence.

The glaze at first was colourless, or pure white, but the ingenious artist soon learnt, by the admixture
of various metallic oxides, to enrich what may be termed his transparent enamel with various colours; and
in this way he was enabled to decorate both basso and alto-reliefs with various tints. We accordingly find

* Italicnische Forschungen.

t “ Fatto con stagiio, terraglietta, antimonio, ed altri miuendi.”

LUCA-DELLA-ROBBIA FRIEZES.

in Rumohr, the copy of an agreement dated a.d. 1446, whereby Luca engages to execute for the Cathedral
“ an Ascension with the twelve Apostles and the Holy Virgin, in his terra cotta invetriata , of the same material
as that placed in the arch of the sacristy, and to introduce colour into the mountain and trees.”

The fame of the invention soon spread abroad, and orders poured in from all quarters, not only from

the Florentines, but even from France and Spain. Luca himself could not execute all these orders, and he
was obliged to call to his aid two assistants, Ottaviano and Agostino ; the former his brother in blood, the
latter his brother only in affection and profession. Vasari, Baldinucci, and Cicognara all agree in making
Agostino really the brother to Luca; but from the documents cited by Rumohr, and by Mariotti in his
“ Lettere Perugine,”* there can be but little doubt that these three great authorities are in error on this
occasion, and, unfortunately, their names have sufficed to make the fallacy a popular one. Be this as it may,
it is at least certain, that Agostino and Ottaviano assisted Luca in carrying out this invention, greatly to
their mutual profit, and that any difference that may exist between their works is that of degree only, and not
of kind. Until Luca’s death, which, according to Lord Lindsay, took place in 1480, but which other
authorities have placed as early as about 1460, he continued labouring diligently in his favourite material;
and through his own efforts, and those of his family, all that amazing quantity of works in terra cotta
invetriata that ornament Tuscany to this day were produced.

Agostino, though not perhaps possessed of the creative genius of Luca, was still an admirable artist, as

a minute examination of the beautiful facade of San Bernardino at Perugia, the most remarkable work ever

executed in the material under consideration, must convince the most sceptical. The Confraternita of San
Bernardino resolving, at the instigation of Ludovico Forni, in the year 1460, to ease the front of the chapel
erected in honour of their patron saint, in the most elaborate and beautiful manner possible, summoned
Agostino in the following year from Florence, and placed their work in his hands.

His design, which covers the whole fa 9 ade of the chapel, is extremely beautiful, and we are quite at a
loss to convey by words any satisfactory idea of the grace with which the minutest details are executed—the
charming expression and freedom of the figures—or the pleasing effect produced by the colour, and varied
texture of the materials employed. These consist of a reddish marble, deepening here and there to a chocolate
colour; a pure white marble; and the blue “faience,” or “della Robbia,” terra cotta, which serves as a ground
to “throw up” the figures in relief.

Agostino has engraved on this, his chef cVoeuvre, an inscription to the following effect:—“Augustini
Florentini Lapicidae;” and the “ Italienische Forsehungen” supplies us with a copy of the original order addressed
to the treasurer of the Municipality of Perugia, on the presentation of which Agostino was to receive the sum
of one hundred florins (forty bollee to each florin) as remuneration for his labour in the fabrication of this
beautiful specimen of art.

After the death of Luca, Ottaviano, and Agostino, their mantle appears to have fallen on Andrea, the son
of Marco, another brother of Luca ; and in his hands, and those of sundry cousins, the secret was religiously
kept. The popular opinion, based on Vasari’s account, appears to be, that with the family expired the secret;
but Baldinucci throws some light on this period of its existence. Fie asserts, that the secret of applying these
vitreous glazings to terra cotta passed through a female relation of the Della-Robbia family into that of Andrea
Benedetto Buglioni, who lived as late as the time of Verocchio. This Andrea conducted many works, both in
and out of Florence, among which were a Resurrection and some angels in the church of the Servi; and various
other specimens in the churches of San Pancrazio, San Pietro Maggiore, &c. Andrea Buglioni bequeathed his
“ craft and mystery” to his son Santi, at whose death, in the year 1568, the process passed into an oblivion
from which it has never been recalled, though many efforts have been made to effect its resurrection : the
most strenuous and successful appear to have been those of Antonio Novelli, a sculptor of the seventeenth
century, and he would seem to have failed only from his own irritability and impatience. Rumohr intimates,
in a correct and almost prophetic spirit, that in these days of scientific chemistry, and increased mechanical
and manufacturing resources, the revival of this elegant art would be as easy as it might be made graceful.
1 hat under the hands of Mr. Minton it will receive its highest developement we have neither fear nor doubt.

Lome io Agliostino d Antonio, schulptore Fiorentino abitatore in Perugia e Fabbrichatore de la Fazata di Sto Bernardino della detta Citta/
ice. It is to be noticed that in this extract the name of Agostino , s father is mentioned as Antonio, whereas that of Luca, all agree, was Simone
lilt, only possibility of Rumohr s error is that the “ d’Antonio” may not be a patronymic, but only indicative of the apprenticeship of Agostino.

'■* i-* VPHR V J Dl.

M Dl- .bv »vvA 1 ! Oif^Fx’

A A'ADR! N LiTH

BORDERS FROM INDIAN MANUSCRIPTS.

ONDQN. PRINTED

AND PUBl I SHED JUNE

1 S ’ l86fi . &V DAY A-. SON i.iTHOGRAPH EP S TO 1H£ ‘iUEIEN

PLATE LXVIII.

IN DIA N M A N U S C ll T P T S.

a chamleXtI 0t of\V- l f-!l! 1Sed l ° ^ ^ ^ ham °" y of colourin S’ which was so essential and distinctive
in an eq^^hri n “ *° ^ ^ ‘he continent of India, should pervade

must remember"the uncf ‘ I""” 80 " 1 * 8 - EvC1 ' y reader of the “Arabian Nights’ Entertainments”

recorded in letter of ' n" ^ ^ filV0Urite tales and romances of the East are directed to be

. . , , 8 ° ld 5 and ° Ur carliest received ideas of Oriental luxury would be imperfect if they did

not include the decoration of the lahniirc nf em *i m J 1 1 ^ 11

of the author ' M " ’ e " lth on,anlents as Sowing and as florid as the language

Although it appears that the «llig-Vedas,” and other early poems of India, are usually written in a simple
manne., and frequently with a style on leaves of the nature of papyri, no sooner did the Mahommedan dynasty
o .tain power and influence than we find the royal edicts and other documents glowing with the rich colouring
and ornamentation peculiar to the followers of the Prophet. There can be little doubt that the intercourse,
which existed between Xusher Van of Persia and the court of Byzantium, and the frequent interchange of
ai ists which took place between those countries, led to a corresponding extension of the art of illumination.

W ® arc told hy Sir Frederic Madden, in his interesting introduction to Mr. Shaw’s “ Illuminated Orna¬
ments, that the process of laying on and burnishing gold and silver appears to have been familiar to the
Oriental nations from a period of remote antiquity; and although there are no instances of its use in the
Egyptian papyri, yet it is not unreasonable to believe that the Greeks acquired from Egypt or India* the
art of ornamenting manuscripts in this manner, which they, probably, conveyed to the Romans. Among the
later Greeks the usage became so common that the scribes or artists in gold were termed cnmgraphol and
seem to have constituted a distinct class.” The great luxury of the age of Constantine appears to have been
that of writing in letters of gold on a vellum tinged with a purple colour. Sir Frederic Madden observes,
that the earliest instance of this practice is recorded by Julius Capitolinus, in his life of the Emperor Maximinus
the younger, to whom his mother made a present of the poems of Homer, written on purple vellum in golden
letters. “ This took place at the commencement of the third century. For upwards of 100 years the practice
seems to have continued to be of rare occurrence; but towards the end of the fourth century, we learn from
a well-known passage of St. Jerome that it had become more frequent. It was, however, confined solely to
copies of the Scriptures and devotional books, written for the libraries of princes and for the service of monas¬
teries. The celebrated Codex argenteus of Uphalas—written in silver and gold letters on a purple ground
about the year 3(il—is, perhaps, the most ancient existing specimen of this magnificent mode of calligraphy ;
after which may be instanced the copy of Genesis at Vienna, the psalter of St. Germain des Pres and the
fragment of the New Testament in the Cottonian Library (Titus, c. xv.),—all executed in the fifth and sixth
centuries.”

It will be remembered that the caliphs of the race of the Abbacide made frequent applications to the
emperors of the East for permission to copy such writings of the Greeks and other ancient authors as
had been preserved amid the wrecks of the learning of the classical ages, and we cannot but observe that a

* An interesting illustration of the reaction upon each other in successive ages of the arts of different countries is afforded by the suggestion,
that that art, which was ultimately transmitted to the Indian continent through the agency of the later Greeks, may, possibly, have been originally
acquired by their predecessors from the source to which it was subsequently rcconvcyed.

INDIAN MANUSCRIPTS,

remarkable opportunity was thus afforded to the Mahommedan races of reproducing the matter of those
authors in the manner peculiar to the Byzantine scribes. Hence that race, which was destined subsequently
to spread itself so largely over the face of the globe, acquired in their practice of illuminating manuscripts,
as in their architecture, many of the details of that style which was carried to such remarkable perfection
under the auspices of Justinian and his successors; and hence we trace in the Indian manuscripts of
the present day many indications of that particular scale of colour and those forms of foliage which we
generally recognise as peculiar to the remains of the art of the Lower Grecian Empire. Thus we find the
richest gold and silver decorations lavished on Oriental manuscripts. Pietro della Valle, the greatest of the
early Italian travellers, mentions a copy of the Gospels in Syriac, written in gold, which he saw at Aleppo in
1()!25, and which was reputed to have been at least 400 years old. Sir Frederic Madden obsei’ses that at
Berlin, according to Wolf, is a Hebrew manuscript of the thirteenth century, the titles and initial words of
which are in gold. In the Sloane Collection, Nos. 2835-2838, are rolls in the language of Thibet, written in

gold and silver on dark blue paper; and, among the Arabians and Persians, examples of later manuscripts,

written and ornamented in gold and silver, are found in abundance, and display a beauty and minuteness so
truly wonderful as to surpass the efforts of any European artists.”

Remembering the Byzantine source from which, as we conceive, much of the art of India was derived, it
is not surprising to find notices of manuscripts in which, instead of the original purple ground, a golden one
was substituted, upon which the text was written in red letters and decorated with ornaments in the most

brilliant colours.

It has been frequently remarked that, owing to the traditional preservation in India of ancient processes
and patterns, many of the arts which its people originally derived from foreign sources still exhibit, in all

their integrity, the peculiar characteristics of that nation or that influence from whence it sprung. Thus, it

we examine the different Indian manuscripts in the museums of Europe, ranging from the fifteenth century to
the present time, but little difference will lie. found to exist between them; and the decorations of the address
of thanks to Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy of Bombay, executed but the other day, recall most vividly the traditions
of the imperial edicts and proclamations of the court of Byzantium. As might reasonably be expected, the
most exquisite illuminated manuscripts have been executed in Persia, in which country the old processes are
preserved in their highest perfection.

A NICHE.

was no rubbing or filing afterwards ; as it was left by the chisel, so it was put up, and so it remained,—
unless, as was frequently the case, it was considered desirable to enrich it with colour.

Another occupation of the wood-sculptor was the preparation of those large “ retables ” and “ triptichs, ,,
which about this time came into general use, for decorating the altars of the churches. These were often
of great size; and although those in France seldom reached up to the vaulting of the church, as they
frequently do in Germany, whence the fashion was derived, yet very few will be found in the latter country
to compare in beauty with the two now preserved in the museum at Dijon. Many were the triptichs executed
in France during this and the ensuing century, but the various causes which have wrought so much destruction
to works of art in that country have rendered them very scarce. Detached figures, which have once formed
parts of them, may, indeed, be frequently met with; but it is much to be doubted whether they were ever
so much in use as in Germany. The fifteenth century saw the use of ivory, in a great measure, laid aside,
as a material for devotional ornaments, and wood substituted in its place, with such success, that many of
the small objects such as rosaries, <Scc. are executed in so delicate a style, that they possess the refinement
of gems rather than that of mere wood-carvings. Thus we often find a space of two inches long by half-an-
inch deep containing several figures, bas-reliefs, inscriptions, &c. With respect to the application of wood-
caning to the stalls of the later Gothic style, many of these still remain in the churches and cathedrals.
By far the finest of all are those of Amiens, " executed in 1508 : Jean Turpin was the principal workman ;
and Antoine Avernier, tailleur damages, carved the subsellce , at thirty-two sols each.f On comparing these
stalls with the nearly contemporary ones at Ulm, we cannot but be struck with the superiority of the work of
Jean Turpin. So little were these monuments appreciated in France during the last century, that in 1760
the Abbe Laugier bitterly reproached the canons for not pulling down what he describes as beino- “ charges
d’un amas de petits colifichets tudesques.”

In the sixteenth century the furniture, which had formerly received but little sculpture, properly speaking,

was covered with all the delicate ornamentation of the Renaissance. During the reigns of Charles VIII. and

Louis XII., and the eaily pait of that of Francis I., there is little to object to, since the ornament is always

giaceful. When a moie ambitious Italian style, influenced by the school of Michael Angelo, was introduced

into Fiance, all became changed. It is true that the composition and drawing of the figures were improved;

but the arabesques disappeared, and were succeeded by scrolls and flowers, which gradually grew heavier,

until, at the end of the reign of Henri II., they became absolutely ugly. Mythology usurped the place of sacred

subjects, and is often found connected with them in a most ludicrous juxtaposition. .Still, the great masters of

the Renaissance by no means neglected the art. Jean Goujon executed the doors of St. Maclou at Rouen,

and many of the wood ornaments at the chateau of Ecouen ; and Primaticcio and Giulio Romano furnished

designs for the carved-wood decorations of the royal palace of Fontainebleau. The art long' continued to be

piactised by monastic workmen. Thus we find in the Musee de 1 hotel de Cluny an armoire, or large cupboard,

in walnut wood, made by the monks of Clairvaux, and presented by them to their abbot in the reign of

Ilemi II. Ihe chief ornaments of this, as well as of most of the other armoires of the time, consisted of
sundry Caryatides.

About the end of the sixteenth century one mannered style pervaded all Europe. It is true that many of
the wood-fittings at St. Cloud and Versailles are imbued with that regal splendour of style which distinguished
the earlier years of Louis XIV.; but in that of his successor this temporary elevation sunk again into degradation,
and the labours of the wood-carver were principally confined to furniture, and the execution of large gilt
candlesticks and altar decorations of equivocal taste. It is not to be imagined, that because the larger works
were at the above low ebb the smaller ornaments suffered equally; on the contrary, many of those !are really
valuable as works of art. They consist, for the most part, of small copies of some well-known antique
groups of figures in la style bergere; of beggars, represented half in wood and half in ivory; of small like¬
nesses, and occasionally of statuettes. All this ceased at the great Revolution. Men were too much immersed in
pohtics to occupy themselves in the arts. The career of Napoleon brought security but not peace,-and it was
the i estoiation that wood-carving began to revive. How rapid its progress has been of late years

was attested by the exquisite delicacy of the works contributed to the Great Exhibition by MM. Lienard,
Knecht, Gruel, Fourdinois, Ringuet le Prince, and others.

* Messrs. Jordain and Duval have published a

most excellent work on

the subject.

f The total cost was 11,230 livres, 5 sols.

PLATE 70

.'——^--——-"-"■-

Bts.-'i v^t^4a.;/.aft-ov\0' x

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if •

PLATE LXX.

DAMASK TABLE-COVERS,

UV EltSKINE BEVERIDGE OF DUNFERMLINE.

The subjects of our present engraving may be considered as excellent specimens of the variety and pleasing
effect which may be produced in this particular material without incurring an unreasonable cost from the
complexity of the design. If space permitted we would willingly trace the various steps of the manufacture,
from the growth of the raw material to the finished article, believing, as we do, that they are by no means so
generally known as the corresponding processes in cotton and woollen fabrics. It must suffice, however, to
indicate the most important. The flax-plant is extensively cultivated in Holland, and in the distiict about Riga,
and although the flax hitherto grown in Great Britain has been inferior to that of the first-named countries,
it is to be hoped that the attempts which have been recently made to improve its cultivation m Ireland will
be ultimately crowned with success. After the flax-plant has been gathered and dried in stacks, it is steeped
in water to remove the glutinous matter which unites the fibres; having been again dried, it is subjected

to the process of “ breaking,” or “scutching,” by which the bark and woody portion of the plant are separated

from the stringy fibres. It next undergoes the operation called “ heckling,” a kind of combing, which reduces
the material to the silky texture for which it is remarkable; and it is then no longer known by the name of flax,
but is called “ linewhile the coarser portion, which is separated in the process of heckling, is called “ tow.”

The “line” next passes through the several operations of spinning, by which it is converted into linen
yarn, and if intended for weaving it is reeled into hanks containing about three thousand yards. Flax, unlike
cotton, silk, or wool, is spun wet, and within the last few years it has been discovered that it can be spun to
a much greater degree of fineness with hot water than with cold. In another respect the manufacture of
flax differs from those of cotton or wool: the latter are exclusively carried on in large factories by the aid ot
a great variety of machinery; in the flax manufacture this is only partially the case, the earlier processes
being to a great extent performed by hand, and a considerable portion of the weaving ot the different fabncs

being done by the handloom at the houses of the opeiatiies ... . „ . .

Damask is one of the most beautiful articles produced by the loom from linen yarn. It is a twilled fab ,c

and much mad for table-lotto. Dunfermline, in Scotland, and Artloyne and Lfebum. m Ireland «,c ceena e,

for the beauty and excellence of their nmnuf.etnre, Brown datum* » tb. »»« •«'* onble 1 ,d Jt to^

i , f ‘ in that state is used as more economical. Diapers are damasks ot smaller si/.e and simpler
deemed stronger m that stare, m .

patterns There are nl.o unton dam.ato and diaper*, made ni hue. and cotton continued

' “he followin'* account nf the manufacture of .hi. article, w. have much plea.ur, to aekn.wledgrng the
the t ]dndly f U mished us by Mr. Erskine Beveridge of Dunfermline,

valuable information w iic i ^ introducc d into Ireland about 1764, and at the present time the finest quality
The damas c maim ac ui < ^ ^ equalled> by the choicest products of Saxony. These fabrics may

of Irish damasks is not excc c ' fines t double damasks, and the other of single damasks and

be -edmto^s^ ^ ^ rf ^ not 80 muc b from the intrinsic cost of manu

diapers. Tlie fiist-nanud J (r ,. eat ense incurred in getting up special designs. The second

facture, which » W of ^ g0 ods for home sale and export. Cheapness being the chief

division comprises the g ieax

DAMASK TABLE-COVERS.

desideratum, they are produced at a price so low as to encourage their consumption among all classes of society.
The principal export is to the United States of America. As yet the Continental markets have scarcely
been tried, although notwithstanding the high rate of duty, it is probable that there would be a considerable
sale of the lower priced fabrics. To all who have seen the coarse plain linen with which the tables of the
middle classes in France and Germany are generally covered, it will be evident that diapers, or single damasks,
would be much preferred among a people so alive to the embellishment of their houses and the tastefulness
of their furniture.

In Scotland Dunfermline takes precedence in the manufacture of fine linens, as damasks, &c., and claims
the honour of its early introduction into that part of the country. According to a tradition devoutly believed
in by the natives of the place, a citizen of the name of Blake, about the beginning of the last century,
gained access to the weaving factory at Drumsheugh, near Edinburgh, by feigning imbecility, and carried away
with him the mysteries of damask weaving to enrich his native town. Whether this be a myth or a true
tale, it is certain that with the exception of a small carpet-factory in the deserted monastery, no textile fabrics
were at that time produced in the locality, excepting a few huckabacks, bed-ticks, and linsey-woolseys ; and it
was not till nearly the last decade in that century that the damask trade acquired sufficient importance to
attract London buyers. The competition among these gentlemen then became so strong that many amusing
anecdotes are still related of the manufacturers concealing a portion of their stock, lest the buyer should
purchase the whole, and leave them nothing to show to the next comer.

At that early period the designs were so rude, and the workmanship so imperfect, that it was by no

means uncommon to see a bird with a hiatus of half-a-yard between the body and head; while trees and
flowers, which it would puzzle a Linnaeus or a Paxton to classify, formed the staple of the patterns then
in vogue. About the beginning of the present century a better taste began to prevail, principally through
the exertions of Mr. J. N. Paton (father of the celebrated artist). The introduction of the Jacquard loom,
by giving greater precision to the patterns, and increased facility of production, lent a fresh impulse to the
trade; and in 1830, the establishment of the late Drawing Academy by the manufacturers and the Board
of Trustees for promoting Scottish Manufactures, still further developed its resources.

From that time to the present the productions of the Dunfermline looms have gradually improved, both
in excellence of fabric and of design : many new textures have also been introduced. Diapers, huckabacks,
sheetings, floor-cloths, counterpanes, white-on-brown and bleached damask cloths, and table-covers of every
colour and material, are all extensively manufactured there. Between five and six thousand persons are
employed in their production. Of these, the brown and bleached table-cloths are the most important items;

and next to these the coloured table-covers, which, like Birmingham guns and Sheffield knives, are found

in every quarter of the world, from the shanties of Kentucky to the mosques of Damascus, the ancient
metropolis of the damask trade. It is now about twenty-five years since the manufacture of damasks was
introduced at Dunfermline: the first articles of the kind were of coloured cotton on white linen, the patterns
being of the old table-cloth designs. The specimens engraved were exhibited by Mr. Beveridge, who employs
upwards of 1500 workers, partly in his steam and hand-loom factories, and partly at their own homes in the
various branches of the trade. The lower design is from a drawing by Mr. Owen Jones; and the upper
was composed by Mr. Waller Paton, a young artist of the town, who is successfully prosecuting the study of
his art. There cannot, we think, be a doubt, that the late Exhibition tended materially to improve the character
of the designs of the Dunfermline productions; for not only were the best efforts of the artists on the spot
called into activity, but sketches were procured from artists of distinction, both native and foreign. The
number of cards employed in these examples is only about 2100, while for some of the table-cloths by the
same exhibitor, such as the Cupid and Psyche, and the George and the Dragon, from sixteen to twenty thousand

were required, and the expense of patterns and cards exceeded 150/. for each. The yarns used for the
Dunfermline table-linen are principally procured from Leeds, Preston, Belfast, and Dundee. From the present
healthy condition of the trade of the district there is every reason to expect that it will attain a developement

little anticipated by those even who, like Mr. Beveridge, have the most contributed to its present high
position.

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PLATE LXXL

PAPER-HANGING,

BY W. WOOLLAMS AND CO., OF LONDON.

The specimen, of paper-hanging from which our plate was engraved was originally displayed at the third
exhibition of recent British Manufactures and Decorative Art, at the Society of Arts, in 1849, on which occasion
a silver medal "was awaided by the Council for this and other productions of the same firm. Every colour in
the pattern, it may he scaicely necessary to remark, is printed from a separate block, and we have ascertained
from the manufacturers that between sixty and seventy blocks were required for the pilaster alone; while those
for the whole design have cost no less than £140.

The establishment of Messrs. Woollams was originally founded by Mr. William Woollams, Senior, the father
of the gentlemen who now conduct it, and his knowledge of the principles and practice of the business were
acquired in the celebrated establishment of Mr. Sherringham, of Great Marlborough Street.

In our notice of Plate XLII. we traced the progress of the rich hangings which preceded the employment
of paper as a mural decoration in England, and we shall now endeavour to examine the commoner substitutes
which were used by the middle and poorer classes.

Tapestry, it may readily be imagined, from its costliness, was hung only in the more important apartments
and halls, whilst in the ordinary rooms materials of an inferior description were employed, which, though often
called tapestry, were probably only cloths or canvas, stained or painted in oil, or with a resinous size,
generally strained on frames and fixed to the walls. Theophilus* described the method of painting walls, &c.
with oil paint, and Cennino Cennini (1437) treats on the methods of painting in oil on wood in panels and
on walls, a practice, he says, much used in Germany (“che Pusano molto i Tedeschi”). Sir Charles Eastlake,
in his valuable work, “ Materials for a History of Oil Painting,” gives a very interesting account of the cloth¬
painting of the English and Germans, and their peculiar process of tempera

“ In the Treviso record preserved by GukT Antonio Zanetti,f mention is made of a German mode of
painting (in water-colours) on cloth. This branch of art seems to have been practised on a large scale in
England during the fourteenth century, so as to attract the notice of foreigners. The following passages occur
in Le Begue’s copy of the MSS. of Alclierius, ‘Item, in the same original it is thus written: On Tuesday,
the 11th day of February, 1410, I caused a copy to be made in Bologna of certain receipts lent to me by
Theodoric of Flanders, an embroiderer at Pavia, which receipts the same Theodoric said he had obtained in
London in England from the artists who used the water-colours hereinafter described.’ The transcriber
resumes: ‘After the above, it was thus written in the original,—The aforesaid Theodoric, from whom 1 had
these receipts, said that in England the painters work with these water-colours on closely woven linen, saturated
with o-um-water. This, when dry, is stretched on the floor over coarse woollen and frieze cloths, and the artists,
walking over the linen with clean feet, proceed to design and colour historical figures and other subjects. And,
because the linen is laid quite flat on the woollen cloths, the water-colours do not flow and spread, but remain
.'here they are placed, the moisture sinking through into the woollen cloths underneath, which absorb it. In

* “ Dc Divcrsis Artibus Schcdula.”

t “ Trattato della Pittura.”

PAPER-HANGING, BY WOOLLAMS AND CO.

like manner, the outlines of the brush remain defined, for the gum in the linen prevents the spreading of
such lines. Yet after this linen is painted, its thinness is no more obscured than if it was not painted at all,
as the colours have no body.’ It is remarkable that a native of Flanders, not unacquainted with art, should
notice this practice in England, and record the process and materials, for the inference is, that the peculiar
method he describes was not practised in his own country at the period in question. In the beginning of the
fifteenth century, the ordinary tempera-painting was certainly common in the Netherlands, rooms being then,
as Van Mander states, frequently hung with large works of the kind (executed with egg-and-size colours),
instead of tapestry. lie remarks this when speaking of Roger of Bruges, a scholar of Van Eyck, and continues,

4 I have such hangings at Bruges, which I am inclined to think were executed by him.’ The peculiarity of
the English method appears to have been its absolute transparency.

“ As regards the English and German paintings on cloth, there can be little doubt that the thinness of
execution for which they were remarkable, though it did not preclude gilding, was adopted with a view to
durability. Sandrart affirms that the ordinary (more solid) tempera had been found not to last in the Nether¬
lands, meaning that it was affected by damp. The priority of records respecting the vehicle is in favour of
England; indeed from a passage in an early manuscript it may be inferred that the process, such as it was,
had been borrowed by the Germans from this country. It is possible that the result of this method of tinting
linen was to produce something analogous in appearance to our present printed cottons, for c A drawing sent
by Albert Durer to Raphael is described by Vasari as having been painted ‘ in water-colours on a fine linen
cloth, which showed the transparent light on both sides, without white, water-colours only being added, while
the cloth was left for the light; which thing appeared wonderful to Raphael.” Whatever method of colouring
may have been used, the style of the decoration seems to have been of the same character.”

Mr. Hunt observes that “ The devices employed in the oil-painted decoration and in water-work are shown
by Falstaff’s address to Mrs. Quickly to have been similar to those which were used in the better sort of tapestry,
‘ and for thy walls a pretty slight drollery or the story of the prodigal, or the German hunting in water-work,
is worth a thousand of these bed-hangings and these fly-bitten tapestries.’ But the mottoes being adapted to
less elevated orders of society, were in a more familiar style. Dr. Bulleyne, in a work entitled ‘A Dialogue
both Pleasant and Pitiful,’ &c. 1564, says, ‘This is a comelie parlour, and faire cloths, with pleasant borders
aboute the same, with many wise sayings painted upon them .’ The style and point of these wise sayings arc
displayed in a publication of 1601 :—

f Read what is written on the painted cloth ,—
Do no man wrong; be good unto the poor.
Beware the mouse, the maggot and the moth ;
And ever have an eye unto the door. 5

“ And Shakspeare, in his ‘ Rape of Lucrece,’ says,—-

f Who fears a sentence, or an old man’s saw,
Shall by a painted cloth be kept in awe. 555

Archdeacon Nares defines painted cloth “ as a species of hangings for rooms very frequently mentioned in
old authors, and generally supposed and explained to mean tapestry; hut which was really cloth or canvass
painted in oil, with various devices and mottoes.” It is related that “ Mayster Thomas More in hys youth

devysed in his father’s house, in London, a goodly hanging of fyne painted clothe, with nyne pageauntes, and
verses over every of these pageauntes.”

These painted cloths were also imported as well as tapestries, for we find that in the insurrection of the
Londoners against the foreign traders on May-day, 1517 (the Evil May-day as it was long called), amongst
the goods of the importations of which by the “ merchant strangers ” complaints were made, painted cloths
aie mentioned. In the seventeenth of Elizabeth, in a petition addressed to the Commons, the painters set
forth, that painting on cloth is decayed.” It is probable that other forms of surface decoration were intro¬
duced at that time, such as embossed leather, with gold ornaments on coloured grounds; the pannelling of

v\alls also, and peihaps hand-painted paper-hangings, for from statutes in France of the date, 1586, paper-
staining is found to be a recognised trade.

l»IMI Mill* III* iMIHIttiU'iailUHl

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PLATE LXXII.

INDIAN KINCOB PATTERN,

IN WHITE SILK AND GOLD THREAD.

In our notice of Flute XXIV. we entered at some length upon the subject of the principal localities of
the continent of India, in which the richest manufactures of the above description are produced; and in our
observations upon Plate XII. we referred to the process by which the gold thread, or ha/IIa, is prepared for
the use of the weaver. On the present occasion we shall confine our remarks to the peculiar effects arising

from the combination of a metallic lustre with silk and other materials.

Any conclusions to which we might ourselves have arrived concerning the principles which should guide
the designer in the arrangement of patterns for such fabrics have been, in a great measure, forestalled by
Mr. Owen Jones, who, in his interesting Lecture on the employment of Colour in the Decorative Aits, and
in his Catalogue of the Articles purchased from the Great Exhibition for the use of the School of Design, has
entered with zeal and ability into a consideration of those sources of expression by the command ot which
the Indian designer is enabled to produce his most harmonious and brilliant effects.

In the lecture above referred to Mr. Jones remarks, that the fundamental principles upon which gold
should be used in combination with colour in decoration are as follows Firstly, that where ornaments of any
colour are upon a gold ground, the ornament should be separated from the ground by an edging of darker
colour. The reason he alleges for this principle is, “that the gold ground, from its greater power, has a
tendency to invade, and overflow on to the coloured ornament, and this is at once arrested by the darker
edging.” Secondly, that gold ornaments on any colour should be outlined by black. The principle involved
in°this dogma is precisely the converse of the preceding proposition; since in the one case the black line
keeps the ground, and in the other the pattern, within its proper limits. Thirdly, that ornaments of any
colour may be separated from grounds of any other colour by edgings of white, gold, or black. The reason
assigned for the peculiar qualification of gold as a vehicle for rendering outline distinct, and preventing the
confusion or merging of contrasted colours, is, that it acts as a neutral, and by its interposition “ prevents the
simultaneous contrasts from being sensibly felt, and preserves the integrity of the colours.” Fourthly, that
“ ornaments in any colour, or in gold, may be used on white or black grounds without outline or edging; the
white ground, reflecting all the rays, destroys by its superior intensity the white rays reflected by the coloured
bodv, and its form becomes perfectly defined. The black ground absorbs all the rays, 01 1 effects but leiy
feebly white rays, so as scarcely to modify the colour juxtaposed.” Mr. Jones observes, in reference especially
to Indian fabrics, that “ when gold ornaments are used on a coloured ground, where the gold is used m large
masses there the ground is darkest, and where the gold is used more thinly there the ground is lighter and
more delicate. When a gold ornament is used on a coloured ground, the colour of the ground is carried into

it by ornaments or hatched work in the ground colour on the gold itself.”

It is a fortunate circumstance for the students of design in this country that a collection of such specimens
of Oriental fabrication as best illustrate the accuracy of these principles should have been purchased by the
Government for their use. In them we may remark how frequently the general effect and harmony of the
whole has been assisted by what, at first sight, would appear to be a defect in the process of manufacture.

INDIAN KINCOB PATTERN, IN WHITE SILK AND GOLD THREAD.

Where a warp consists of gold or silver thread, the threads of the weft being brought to the surface enrich
it with a geometrical or conventional pattern. The necessity so to interweave the coloured weft with the
gold warp thread as to form the network which holds the fabric together, exactly produces that subdued
repetition of the pattern colour throughout the golden ground which serves to prevent the pattern from
appearing cutting, or too harshly relieved from the ground itself.

When we recur historically to the long chain of experiments which have been steadily worked out, so as
to afford a satisfactory solution of the problem how best to unite the precious metals with colour, we shall
find that they have been proceeding from the earliest antiquity. In Mr. Yates’s valuable work on the Weaving
of the Ancients, we find many allusions to cloth of gold, as well as to gold united with silk and interwoven in
patterns. Throughout the Roman empire fabrics of this description were well known and popular, though

ruinously costly. The gold and silken webs of the island of Cos are frequently alluded to in the writings of

the poets and satirists. The Babylonian stuffs are mentioned by Dr. Royle “ as being adorned both with gold
and variously-coloured figures. A peacock’s train is compared to a figured Babylonicum enriched with gold;

while the peplum, or shawl, had the greatest skill and labour bestowed upon its fabrication, and various

objects were frequently represented upon it.”

The great predilection which the Romans manifested for these golden dresses, and for golden enrichments
generally, was no doubt inherited from them by their descendants, the inhabitants of the Lower Empire, long
after the traditions of the fine arts had perished. Thus we find the Byzantines indulging in golden writings,
in gilded mosaics, and in the richest embroidery, jewels, and enamels. From the remains which have come
down to us of their attainments in these departments of the industrial arts, we have no difficulty in recognising
the fact that they had arrived at a just appreciation of the important principles to which we have alluded.
Thus every colour and every pattern in their mosaics are separated clearly and distinctly from each other
and from the adjacent gold ground by the fine white line of the cement which forms the junction of the
tesseree. In their enamels every coloured paste is separated from its adjacent coloured paste by the delicate
thread of gold which forms the minute cells into which those pastes are inserted. In their manuscripts,
where colour is applied upon a gold ground, the outline of the pattern is invariably edged with a black or
white line, or shaded with a neutral colour, approaching black. In the few specimens of embroidery which
remain, or of which representations have been preserved, the same system of treatment may be noticed.
Thus there can be little doubt that although their theory may not have been based upon any general
perception of the limits which science prescribes, still their practice was invariably systematic.

When the Moors imbibed from the inhabitants of Byzantium their first principles of design, they no doubt
availed themselves of the developement which the art of blending gold and colours harmoniously had attained in
the Lower Empire. M e find in most of the Moorish productions a strict attention to those practices which
conferred so agreeable an effect on the Byzantine works. The use of the dark line to prevent gold patterns
from spreading on to coloured grounds, or gold grounds from encroaching on coloured patterns, was constantly
adopted; and the introduction of the white line, to distinctly trace the contour of every form, was carried
perhaps to so great an extent as to degenerate into mannerism.

That taste for gold and colours which the followers of Mahomet originally derived from the Greeks was
carried by them to the East, and there at once found a congenial atmosphere. Adopted to heighten those
effects of splendour, by the display of which alone the monarch could habitually awe his subjects into sub¬
serviency, the most dazzling combinations of glowing colours and gorgeous materials speedily became the
essential concomitants of every durbar , or festival, and every religious ceremony.

Thus, no doubt, we may still trace in these golden fabrics of the East the retention and perfected treat¬
ment of those very designs which, in their earlier days, had made the glories of the court of Justinian
proverbial amongst historians. The two facts that, on the one hand, the Greeks and Indians, with probably
no scientific consideration of the subject, should have invariably practised a system of arrangement based upon
scientific lavs of vliich they were profoundly ignorant; and that we, on the other hand, by an analysis of
thtii piactice, should now be enabled to verify the scientific laws on which pleasing effects depend, combine to
furnish an inteiesting evidence of the relation which invariably subsists between the tendencies of man to

specific foims of the beautiful, and those immutable laws of nature which determine the conditions of all
beauty in specific form.

PLATE 73

VWurjjj ,j

w e.POZII DEI

Y WYAT 1 , DI R L X

fft/DERJCVS CVILELMVS .N .R EX. BORVSSORVM
-ALBERTO EOVARDO PR I NCI PI V/ALLIAE^r
/NMEMOKIAM DIEL BAPTXXV MIAN A MDCCCXLlI

■ \ f i KT/ 1

'Wj*

J A VIN TER , UTH

A PORTION

PRESENTED 3Y HIS MAJESIY THF KING OF PRPSSIA

F A SILVER SHIELD.

I'is royai IIGHNES3 the prince oe wales,on the occasion of hi s baptism

V •' (

LITHOGRAPHERS TO the QUEEN

N PRNTED AND

>AV A SON

PLATE LXXIII.

A PORTION OF A SILVER SHIELD

PRESENTED BY HIS MAJESTY THE KING OF PRUSSIA TO HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE

PRINCE OF WALES, ON THE OCCASION OF HIS BAPTISM.

This shield is one of the finest examples which have been executed in modern times of the variety of
silversmiths’ work which is generally known as “ repousse,” a process by means of which all the numerous
bucklers, ewers, and other similar objects which decorate the private collections and public museums of Europe
are executed. All who have visited those repositories must have had opportunities for admiring the beautiful
works in which the revived taste for the antique was so admirably carried out by the artist metal-workers of
the sixteenth century, headed by the immortal Cellini.

The centre of the shield exhibits the head of our Saviour, ■which, is surrounded by emblematical repre¬
sentations of the two sacraments, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper; with their Old Testament types, the striking
of the rock by NIoses, and the fall of manna in the wilderness. These are contained in four compartments,
divided by a cross and surrounded by an ornamental border. At the extremities of the arms of the cross are repre¬
sented the Evangelists, noting down in the Gospels the events they have seen and the truths they have heard ;
and thus communicating to all futurity the plan of man’s salvation. The Christian virtues, Faith, Hope, Charity,
and Righteousness, are introduced into the arabesques that rise above the figures of the Evangelists. In a
band enclosing the central subjects the twelve Apostles are placed, with some reference to the emblematical
figures just mentioned: thus, Peter is seen under Faith; on the right and left of him are Philip and Andrew;
under Hope we find James, with Bartholomew and Simon on either side; John is placed beneath the figure
of Charity, accompanied by James the Less and Thomas; under Righteousness is Paul, and on his right and
left are Matthew and Judas; St. Thaddeus also is represented as going forth into the world to teach and baptize,
and to propagate the faith of the Redeemer.

In the relievo which runs round the edge of the shield are represented the Betrayal, the redeeming
Atonement of Christ, and his Resurrection. Another portion presents our Lord’s triumphant entry into
Jerusalem; in a third, the descent of the Holy Ghost, the preaching of the Gospel, and the first formation of
the Church, are pictured. The fourth and principal compartment contains an allegorical representation of the
birth of the Prince of Wales, and of the King of Prussia’s visit to England, accompanied by Baron von Humboldt,
General von Natzmer, and Count von Stolberg, and welcomed by II.R.II. Prince Albert and the Duke of
Wellino-ton ; St. George and the Dragon, represented standing on the beach, sufficiently indicate the country to
which the visitors are approaching. The inscription on the shield runs thus

Frederick's Gulielmus Rex Borussorum
Alberto Edwardo Principi Wallle.

In memoriam Diei Bapt. xxv. Jan. a. mocccxlii.

The whole work, both in design and execution, reflects the greatest credit on all those concerned in its
production. The general idea of the subjects was suggested by the King himself, and was admirably worked

A PORTION OP A SILVER SHIELD DESIGNED I3Y M. CORNELIUS.

out by Doctor Peter von Cornelius, whose reputation is European. The decorative parts were designed by
M. Stiller, Professor of Architecture at Berlin. The execution of the goldsmith’s work and enamel was entrusted
to M. G. Hossauer, assisted in the modelling by M. A. Fischer, and in the lapidary work by M. Calandrelli;
the chasing was executed by VI. H. Mertins.

We gladly embrace the present opportunity to present our readers with a slight sketch of the life and
works of the great artist to whom we owe the beautiful design now before us, and whose name must ever be
intimately associated with the history of that great movement which has given to modern German Art a life
and vigour which, if it fail in all respects to excite our affections, at least succeeds invariably in stirring our
passions and affecting our imaginations.

Born at Diisseldorf in 1783, M. Cornelius was placed by his father, Inspector of the Gallery of that
town, at the school of Langer; but so little talent did he evince for drawing, that his masters had no hope
of his advancement in this art. He, however, followed his own method with better success. Pecuniary
necessity having caused him to solicit the charge of decorating in chiaroscuro the Byzantine church of the
little town of Neuss, he determined to execute this work with great conscientiousness, and set himself to

study the works of Raphael and the Carracci through the medium of Dutch engravings. These models, in

conjunction with the striking and original forms of the architecture of the cathedral itself, gave rise to the
style and taste he afterwards carried out with so much success. Even at this early date he showed a decided
predilection for the antique. Shortly afterwards, in 1810, he commenced his designs from Goethe’s “Faust,”
which were completed in 1811 at Frankfort. In the same year he visited Rome; and in the frescoes which
he executed in that city and at Munich, M. Cornelius has himself indicated the feeling with which he studied
the different phases of art which Italy presents to the student. Confining his labours to cartoons and frescoes,
our artist has painted but one picture in oil, “ A Deposition,” with figures of small size. This picture he
presented, as a mark of respect, to M. Thorwaldsen.

In 1820 the King of Bavaria commissioned him to paint the three saloons of the Glyptothek, at the
back of the edifice connecting the Greek and the Roman sculpture contained in the wings. Of these, only
the rooms at the two extremities gave any scope for the display of the artist’s talent, that in the centre
being but a narrow passage. In these three saloons M. Cornelius has sketched the whole story of antiquity—
in the first, picturing the gods; in the last, the heroes; and in the intermediate one, to form, as it were, a
link between heaven and earth, he has represented the story of Prometheus.

In 1825, while these frescoes were yet unfinished, M. Cornelius received from King Louis the title of

Director of the Academy of Munich, and, at the same time, the Order of Civil Merit and Personal Nobility.
He was next directed to paint in fresco the Church of St. Louis, the erection of which had just been confided
to M. Gaertner. He repaired to Rome to compose the cartoons for this work, in order that he mio-ht have
the advantage of studying the great Italian masters. On his return to Munich with his studies he was welcomed
wfith a reception which will long be remembered, and which resembled the triumphal entry of a conqueror.
The King himself went out to receive him, accompanied by all the artists in the capital, and a large part of the
population.

The architect placed at the disposal of M. Cornelius three large wall-spaces and four vaults; being the
ends ol the transepts and the choir, and the vaults over them, also that in the centre: in the vertical spaces of
the transepts the artist has painted the mission of God the Son in two subjects, the commencement and the
termination of the Saviour’s life, represented by the Adoration of the Magi and the Crucfiixion. In that of
the choir he has treated the Last Judgment; the subject on the central vault is the Empire of the Holy Spirit,
while that of the choir displays the power of the Father, who, surrounded by the heavenly host, creates the
world. Other sacred subjects are represented in various parts, in which are figured different holy personages.

lhe taste and genius of M. Cornelius being more in harmony with the severe school of Byzantine than
with that of classical art, he has been more successful in his treatment of these frescoes than in those of the
Glyptothek. I he same reason accounts for the success of his drawings in illustration of the “ Niebelungen
Lied, executed at Rome. Ol late years his most important labours have been his cartoons and frescoes for
the Campo Santo at Berlin, and his series of designs from Dante’s “ Paradiso.”

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1’LA'L'E LXXIV.

EXHIBITED BY E.

I, BETTS OF LONDON.

The subject of our present Plate was contributed by Edward Ladd Betts, Esq., and was made fiom
materials raised upon his estate in Kent, after a design by Mr. John Thomas. It is an excellent specimen ot
the capabilities of the material under the hands of a judicious and skilful master. The power of
reproduction, which the plasticity of the substance affords, renders it particularly applicable for architectural
purposes, where the same ornamental parts may be frequently repeated; and while it may be moulded into
the most delicate forms, its hardness when baked is such as to resist the influence ot the weather foi a much

longer period than most of the building-stones in use.

We have taken occasion in former articles to notice some particular branches of the use of moulded and
baked clay for ornamental purposes on the Continent. We propose now to give a slight sketch ot the use ot
the material in England. Although the manufacture of bricks appears to have been carried on m England
with scarcely any interruption since the time of its introduction by the Romans, we are unable to refer to
any examples of ornamental brickwork or moulded terra cotta previous to the time ot the Tudors. A plastic
material was well suited to produce the elaborate detail of the architecture ot that period, and numerous stately
halls in Norfolk, Essex, and other counties, show that our ancestors knew how to avail themselves of its
capabilities. For the most part, however, the work of that period must be considered rather as moulded
brickwork than ornamental terra cotta, since the masses are generally small, and are worked in with the
ordinary bricks, with which they accord in colour. Most persons are familiar with the richly-moulded brick
chimney - shafts, which are, perhaps, the chief feature of these mansions: as some of the most striking
examples we may mention Nether Ilall, in Essex, of the time of Richard III. ; Oxburgli Hall, Norfolk; Brickley
Hall. East Barsham; Gifford’s Ilall, and West Stowe Ilall, all of the time of Henry VIII. At Sutton Park,
Surrey, the walls are of the usual red brick; but the principal architectural features, such as the sides, heads,
and millions of the windows and doors, are formed in large pieces of burnt clay, of a strong cream-colour, made
in moulds, and partly ornamented in relief. At Layer Marney House, of the same period, the decorations on
the summit, as well as those of the windows and cornices, are made of a species of white brick, cast in moulds,
in laro-e and thick masses. These last examples may, perhaps, be looked upon with greater propriety as

instances ot ornamental terra cotta.

The gateway built by Henry VIII. at Whitehall, about 1530, may also be quoted. Pennant,* in his - History
of London ” says “ To Holbein was owing the most beautiful gate at Whitehall, built with bricks ot two colours
and disposed in a tessellated fashion. On each front were four busts in baked clay, m proper colours, which
resisted to the last every attack of the weather.” These busts were placed in circular niches, and from the style
of their execution were probably of Italian origin; indeed, Pennant’s remarks as to their colour would almost

lead to the conclusion that they were the work of some member of the Delia Robbia family.

At Hampton Court we again find some busts in terra cotta, introduced in the same manner as those at
Whitehall On the tower of the Eastern gateway of the entrance court there are two busts of the Roman
emperors, Trajan and Hadrian; on the opposite gateway there are two corresponding ones of the emperors

* “ Sonic Account of Loudon, by Thomas Tennant,

VASE IN TERRA COTTA.

Vitellius and Tiberius, and four others on the turrets of the second court. All these appear to be of Italian
workmanship, and they are said to have been presented to Cardinal Wolsey by Pope Leo X. at the time he
made these large additions to the palace. They are also regarded as the work of the Della Robbias, but probably
without sufficient reason, as they possess scarcely any of the characteristics of their work.

During the reigns of the Stuarts we continue to find numerous examples of the use of moulded brickwork
and terra cotta ; as principal among which we may designate Holland House, Kensington.

From the dcclme ot taste durin S the succeeding period, and from the diminished intercourse with Italy,
we need feel but little surprised that the art should have lain dormant until its revival at the latter part of

the last centuij by Miss Eleanor Coade, a lady whose talents and spirit of enterprise were called into activity
by adverse fortune., Pennant thus alludes to the manufactory she established“ In a street called Narrow
Mall is Mis. Coade s manufactory of artificial stone. Her repository consists of several very large rooms, filled
with every ornament which can be used in architecture. The statue, the vase, the urn, the rich chimneypieces,
and everything which could be produced out of natural stone or marble by the most elegant chisel, is here
to be obtained at an easy rate. Proof has been made of its durable quality. A beautiful font, the ornament
o ebden Church m Essex, and which was formed on a most admirable antique model, was given to it by
t le liberality of Richard Muihnan Trench Chiswel, Esq, and is the admiration of every person of taste.”

From an interesting paper on the subject of terra cotta by Mr. Charles Fowler* we glean some further
particulars respecting this manufactoryAbout sixty years ago Miss Coade, from Lyme Regis, embarked in a
small manufactory of artificial stone in Lambeth, which, by her perseverance and good management, eventually
attained a considerable degree of celebrity. To this original establishment in Lambeth the merit is due of
greatly improving the composition of the material, and the processes by which its permanent character was
a amed. The proprietor had also sufficient enterprise and discrimination to avail herself of the talents of some
cs mguished artists ; and thus produced works of a superior character, which may fairly vie with those of the
clusel The bas-relief in the pediment over the western portico at Greenwich Hospital, representing the Death
o elson, was designed by West, and executed by Bacon and Panzetta, who also modelled many other
c is mguished works. The rood-screen at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, was executed in the same material ”
Miss Coade carried on the manufactory successfully for a considerable number of years, and many
is mguished artists of the day executed works in terra cotta for her. Flaxman displayed his genius there and
even enjamin M est laid down Ins brush for a time and modelled ornamental statues. Mrs. Siddons modelled
a bus of herself and of her brother, John Kemble; Mrs. Darner also executed several works. But Bacon

Alhn C S "T" ra ° &t , PeiSeVenng aSSlStmit ’ f ° r WhIch WS a PP r ®ticeship to a potter had well prepared him
Allan Cunningham in Ins « Lives of British Artists,” saysIt was the practice of sculptors in those days

end their sketches and small clay models to the pottery furnace to be burnt; and these youim Bacon

™ ** - * «*» » . >vl»t he could not full superior ,

groups and figures manufactured by his master.” 1

When Miss Coade established her manufactory Bacon was engaged as a modeller, as he then occupied

veiy humble position compared to that which his talent enabled him subsequently to attain To emote •
from the life of that industrious artist —“ We find him ” ot v, ,, q again

“ C ° a ; leS 7 fiC ; al St0ne manufact °ry. -on after its establishment in 1769 , and i , TOt ^ 7

proprietor, who felt that his talents were making a profitable impression on the public* Group 11 t
as large as life, coats of arms, sculptured key-stones, wreaths of flowers, and all that speck of w rk l T

i : he : modeiied ’ r* and s

some time previous to her death/which occurredTlsl ^ C °" t,nUed ** ^ ^ h '*-***,

may beto^dT^l^ntof theZZ ^ 7 ^ ^ '****’ Mn F ° wler remarks that “St. Pancras Church

material, at the large outlay of o'ioo/ ”7' ^ 1 ^ ° f ““ ° n,amental details bein S formed of this

the architect- and *7 t ^ b * Mr * Rossi ’ from the designs of Mr. Inwood

At th e’Z! 7 8 P appearances the « promises to be very durable.

for the extended LT^tT^T t^ 7i ° f ““ ^ a **

Ladyshore Company by Me r '* °° *’ <1IU *' tllHUuh much has been done and is now doing by the

conceive, but inadequately thT'^TTZ BlasMdd ’ and others > tbat amount represents, we

increased supply. ' extu 0 ‘ le demand which would immediately follow a cheaper and greatly

* Head at the Institute of British Architects, June 10th, 1850.

?■! -T E

BED R 0 0 M f 1 R N I

i UKr

IN MARQU

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RV T RO

OPE

_ 'i M

Df-DO ^ p -- ’ '< 1 ? ' -MO »U ? ‘ S«£ ft J IV !*■» 55^ 5-- :. . £ '. .

c -t =. •

PLATE LXXV.

MARQUETRY FURNITURE,

BY MESSES. TROLLOPE OF LONDON.

^ hen we take into consideration the early period at which the Tuscan artists manifested their predilection
for that peculiar style of mosaic known as “ Florentine,” which consists of a combination of precious stones
and marbles cut into various forms, so as to produce a regular pattern, it is not surprising to find that
marquetry, which is but a variety of the art of mosaic, should appear to have had its origin in the same
district. The ecclesiastics and rich merchants of Pisa, Florence, and Sienna, vied with each other in lavish
expenditure on the decorations of their churches and palaces. In their furniture especially extreme richness of
ornament prevailed, and their sumptuous mode of employing various coloured woods is still attested by many
an ancient chest, formed to contain the trousseau of a bride. In the chapel of the Palazzo della Signoria at
Sienna there exist a series of pictures, illustrative of the Creed, executed in brown, black, and light-coloured
wood, and said to have been designed by the great Taddeo Bartolo, with whose style they certainly display a
striking coincidence.

According to Vasari,* many such works had been made by the old masters ,—da nostri vecchi ,—which,
although known as lavori di commesso by the moderns, were, among the earlier professors of the art, described as
tarsia. “ The best works which have been made,” says he, “ in this manner were executed in Florence, in the
time of Filippo di Ser Brunellesco, and especially by Benedetto di Maiano. This artist, like all his prede¬
cessors, had in his works employed dark and light-coloured woods only. It was reserved for Giovanni di
Verona to extend the art, by giving various artificial colours to the materials used, by means of waters,

coloured infusions, and penetrating oils. To obtain brilliant high lights he was accustomed to use delicate

slips of willow.” Vasari further remarks that it was the practice of some workers in this method to deepen

their shadows by the application of a hot iron; and of others to use oil of sulphur, and compounds of

corrosive sublimate and arsenic, so as to obtain any desired tint. This latter process was adopted in the
celebrated works of Fra Damiano, in the church of San Domenico at Bologna.

We meet with an interesting illustration of the popularity of marquetry in Italy, in the writings of Sabba
Castiglione,f who, in describing the practice of the most tasteful Italians of the middle of the sixteenth century,
observes, that “ some adorn their houses with inlaid work by Fra Giovanni da Monte Oliveto, or Fra Rafaello
da Brescia, or the Legnaghi; most excellent masters in such works, and chiefly in architectural scenes. But
above all, those who can obtain them decorate their mansions with the works, rather divine than human, of
Fra Damiano da Bergamo, of the order of the Dominicans, who excelled, not only in perspectives like those
other worthy masters, but in landscapes, in backgrounds, and, what is yet more, in figures; and who effected
in wood as much as the great Apelles did with his pencil. I even think that the colours of these woods are
more vivid, brilliant, and beautiful, than those used by painters; so that these most excellent works may be
considered as a new style of painting without colours—a thing much to be wondered at. And what adds to
the marvel is, that though these works are executed with inlaid pieces, the eye cannot, even by the greatest

* “ Introduzionc alle Vitc,” capitolo 21.

f “ RicorcU ovvero Aniniaestramenti.” Venezia, 1562. For the opportunity of referring to this rare work we are indebted to the kindness of
Sir Charles Lock Eastlake, who alludes to the art now under our consideration in his interesting letter to H. Bellcndcn Kerr, Escj., “ On the Decorations
of a Villa,” in “ The Country House,” edited by Lady Mary Fox.

MARQUETRY FURNITURE.

exertion, detect the joints. This worthy father is unapproached, up to the present time, for his skill in tinting
the woods of any colour, and in imitating stone and marble; and I think he will remain without his equal in
future a-es. May God give him grace, as I trust he will, to conduct to a successful termination the works
in S. Domenico at Bologna. I believe and feel certain that these will be considered the eighth wonder of
the world; and like as the Babylonians, the Egyptians, and the Greeks, may have boasted of their temples,
iramids, colossus, and monuments, so happy Bologna may glory in and boast of the choir of San Domenico.
The perfection which was attained in Italy in this art soon spread into France, where in the reign of
Louis XIV. it attained, both in its larger form of parquetry, or flooring, and in its application to domestic
furniture, very great perfection. Great skill was arrived at in dyeing the woods, and burning them, to give the
shadows; but in some of the earlier works it will be found that the materials employed were chiefly of their
natural colours. The latter is, of course, the highest class of marquetry, and is, in reference to that composed
of stained woods, what pietre dure, or genuine mosaic of real stones, is to that made of composition 01 false
stones. The excellence which obtained in France under the monarchy was lost for a time during the revo-
lutions which convulsed the commercial system and industrial energy of that countiy.

Although in a rude form, marquetry had long been practised in England, as may be seen in some of the
fittino-s of Elizabethan and Jacobean houses; still there is little doubt that, in its finer and more artistic shape,
considerable advantage was derived from the introduction of foreign workmen, to whom w e must asci ibe many
of the curious commodes and standing closets occasionally seen in houses of the time of Queen Anne and the
earlier Georges. In modern days the art has been reintroduced; and the late Mr. Baldock, of Hanway Street,
London, who was a dealer in ancient curiosities and modern imitations of them, did much to extend a taste
for marquetry, and to improve the character of works of this description. Many examples of the ait v\eie
contained in the Great Exhibition, but certainly none more admirable than those by Messrs. Trollope, of which
we now engrave a specimen. Both in general design as cabinet furniture, in beautiful decoration by marquetry,
and in tasteful and elaborate execution, the suite of which this object formed a part reflected the highest
credit on English upholstery; and we regret, therefore, our inability to furnish other illustrations of it.

Modern marquetry in general has been open to objection as to its design and execution. Both English
and foreign specimens have been overcharged with colour produced by artificial means; and these colours have
neither proved durable, nor have they been harmoniously applied. From an inequality in the thickness of the
veneers employed,—which, instead of being properly thinned to a uniform substance, are filled up by glue or other
matter,— the smoothness of surface so necessary to a good effect has been too frequently impaired. This is
simply the fault of the workman ; because marquetry is laid with ordinary glue, in the same way as common
veneering, and if carefully executed should be as durable as the plainest article of furniture.

Impressed with these defects, and especially with the transient colour of stained or dyed woods, and the
impossibility of restoring them when faded, Messrs. Trollope resolved to exert all their taste and ability in
the preparation of the objects they contributed to the Great Exhibition. The designs were furnished principally
by a junior member of their firm; the working drawings made by artists in the establishment; and great
care was taken with the modelling and working of the carved enrichments. In designing the marquetry, strict
botanical accuracy, both in form and colour, has been most successfully studied; and, as a matter of minutiae,
it may be observed that even the fibres of the leaves, which are usually indicated by the graving-tool, are of
wood of the necessary colours. Repudiating all artificial colouring, Messrs. Trollope are] justified in the hope
which they express that these works will improve and mellow by time; and if scratched or accidentally injured,
their original beauty may be restored by scraping.

In some remarks which those gentlemen have kindly furnished us with they observe, that “ In the choice
of woods for marquetry, the greatest judgment and experience are required to select such as shall be permanent
in colour, and such parts of them as shall produce the desired effect; moreover, much depends upon the direction
in which the veneers are cut. About twenty different kinds of wood, producing a great variety of effects, accord¬
ing to the parts selected and the mode of cutting, were employed in the articles exhibited. Among these may be
named holly, cam-wood, red sandars, tulip, sandal, and purple woods; ebony, Barbary wood, Russian maple,
lignum-vita?, mulberry, kingwood, amboyna, walnut, porcupine wood,” &c- Messrs. Trollope’s firm was established
in the year 1788, and they have been extensively employed as decorators and upholsterers under most of the eminent
architects of the last fifty years. One of their principal carvers is Mr. Jefferys; and the name of their principal
worker in marquetry is \ andenbrand, whose patience, perseverance, and skill, they warmly acknowledge.

PLATE /b

M l.' i o D Y W Y A1 I , IM KI X '

GREEK EMBROIDERY

J.SLIEGH , Dll. tl l i EH

LONDON PlilNiri) AND PUBIISHED JULY i»' I85H BY DAY AS'N

L I I HO ".EU’tlt I* 3 I O I HE GUI 1 N .

PLATE LXXVI.

GREEK EMBROIDERY.

in a

lm. object we engrave forms a portion of a rich fermeli, or upper jacket, which was included ... „

compete suit of elaborate Palikar costume, contributed to the Great Exhibition by one of the principal
manufacturers of Greece.

" 6 gatller from the “formation contained in the «Official Illustrated Catalogue,” that the art of
embioiduy, both m silk and gold, has of late been considerably improved in Greece. The silk-embroidered
dresses are of an inferior description, whilst those executed in gold thread are only used by the higher
classes. As respects men’s apparel, gold embroidery is only in use among the irregular troops of the army,
and there only by the most wealthy. The costume for ladies consists of a short mantelet, which, if
embroidered in silk, costs about 00 drachmas* and if in gold from 100 to 400 drachmas, according to
circumstances. The male costumes sent for exhibition, comprising the entire dress, varied in price from 2000
to bOOO drachmas. The finest of these were executed by workmen, who, from their taste having been cultivated

in the School of Design established by King Otlio, have been enabled to give a more than usually artistic
character to the objects they have produced.

that splendour of dress, which, in the midst of great penury, the true-born Greek clings to as the
indispensable mark by Avhich his pretensions to gentility may be recognised, is proverbial. Many of the

modern Greeks may thus be said, like the gallants of the Field of the Cloth of Gold, to carry their fortunes
on their backs.

W here any great complexity of design is involved, or any peculiar richness of material employed, the
work is executed by individual tailors, each trading on his own account and employing a few occasional
journeymen only. I he system of maintaining a large establishment of workmen, or executing these labours
in factories, does not yet appear to .have been contemplated by the Greeks. Thus it is that every dress in
which superior ornamentation is required has to be specifically ordered, and, excepting in the largest towns, it
is extremely difficult to find any such garments ready made or kept in stock. It appears that the district
of Janina, in Albania, is that most celebrated for the superiority of its embroidery, and the good taste of
its designs; and many portions of Greece are supplied from thence. Next in celebrity to Janina, comes
Athens; but between these and the smaller towns no very great difference can be said to exist: for so
populai is this elaboiate style of enrichment, and so universal the demand for gorgeously-decorated costume,
especially on such occasions as marriages and other great festivals, that usually, even in the smallest towns,
workmen may be found capable of understanding and executing a complicated and elaborate order. The
character of the ornament varies but little throughout the country. It appears, however, that there are two
traditional classes of design; one resembling the Turkish, and consisting generally of irregular scrolls with
occasional quaint interfacings, and odd angular projections, and the other recalling that peculiar type of
spiral-work which may be regarded as the Ionian characteristic of ancient Greek art. It is rare, however, to
find either of these styles perfectly and consistently carried out.; since while natural good taste induces an
inclination for the ancient Greek style, the caprices of fashion, and the effect of the long subjection of the

* The Greek drachma is equal iu value to about 8d. English.

GREEK EMBROIDERY.

country to Ottoman rule, have caused the introduction of a mixture of Constantinopolitan taste. Ilcnce has
arisen a hybrid style, in which, however, the Turkish manner strongly predominates.

It is not to be imagined that the rich jackets and other garments, such as the doulamas, fustenellas,
liters, See., covered over with enrichments and complicated interlacings of gold or silver thread, can be by
any means universally worn : their use must obviously be confined to the aristocracy; whilst more humble
individuals wear a more homely variety of costume, in which, however, though the cloth is coarser and less
costly, and though wool and thread take the place of gold and silver, still the general effect aimed at is much
the same throughout all classes. From some information with which we have been obligingly favouied by
Mr. R. P. Pullan, we find that the cost of a rich suit complete is about 35/., whilst a more common

description of dress, although still very handsome, may be had for about 10/. I Os.

The style of costume of Albania, it is well known, is almost precisely similar to that of Greece. We
gather from the interesting notes of Mr. Edward Lear* that “of all the tribes of that country, that of the
Glieuheria surpasses all its neighbours in gorgeousness of raiment, by adding to their other vestments a long

surtout of purple, crimson, or scarlet, trimmed with fur, or bordered with gold thread or braiding. Thcii

jackets and waistcoats are usually black. The Albanian bridal attire is most splendid. Purple silk and \ehet,
elaborately embroidered in gold and silver, form the outer garment; the patterns woiked by hand -with the
oreatest taste: two or three under-vests covered with embroidery; lull purple trowseis; innumerable chains
of gold and silver coins and medals; with, a long white and several coloured silk handkeichiefs, complete a
dress which is only worn on great fete days, or such great occasions as marriages and chiistenings.

While the most important part of the preparation of Greek costume is executed by men, much of the
more laborious portion is executed by women. Certain patterns become traditional in tamilies, but in many
cases such is the skill of those employed that they will commence the execution ol an elaboiate piece of
ornament with neither drawing nor any other sort of guide before them. Sketching in w ith the needle the
general outline of the ornament with which they propose to fill up the space allotted foi deeoiation, they
at OYicc to apply the gold or silver thread. The principal parts of the costume on which deeoiation
is lavished consist of the lower part of the sleeves, and the back of the upper jacket, the fiont of the ACbt
which is worn beneath, and the lower part of the front of the fustenella, or garment, which in foim lesembles
the kilt. The gaiters are always most splendidly ornamented. The cap usually worn is the fez, which is
decorated only with a gold tassel; the most usual colours are scarlet and dark purple.

A considerable developcment of the general manufactures of Greece has taken place of late years, and
many materials essential to the making up of their ordinary costume, which were formerly obtained from
Turkey, and even from Italy, are now produced in the country" itself. Thus the great silk factory, which was
established by Sig. Lucas Ralli on the Piraeus at Athens, about six years ago, is now in full work, and
produces annually a large quantity of silk; the greater portion of which is consumed in sashes and belts for
the men, and rich garments for the women.

* “ Journals of a Landscape Painter in Albania, &c.”

PLATE. 7 T

T MR BOV

A !

C A 5T

5TRLAM. A 5 t ATUE BY . H
N BRONZE BA hATF’ ELD

r "OLEV ESQ. OF
Qr LONDON.

LONDON

I5T tab? Pv DAY Sc SON

'.MH'U PR'N'LD AKJT PLB- 5 -4L7J

i rrHoc.PA*r l~;- vo " -h ou11

PLATE LXXVH.

A YOUTH AT A STREAM.

A STATUE BY FOLEY, A.B.A., CAST IN BRONZE BY HATFIELD.

In his life of John Bacon, the distinguished sculptor, Mr. Allan Cunningham alludes to bronze-casting
as one of the many branches of art to which that distinguished artist applied his talents. “ Then and long

afterwards,’' he remarks, - an air of secrecy and mystery was observed concerning the art of casting in metal"

and a process at once simple and easy was taught to he regarded as something magical. Of the materials
which composed the external and internal mould—the mode of rendering them safe for receiving the liquid,
burning metal—the melting of the copper—the quantities of alloy, and the proper degree of heat,—the working
aitists spoke in a mysterious language, resembling in no small degree those conversations on alchemy so
happily ridiculed by Ben Jonson. The veil has been raised a little of late from the mystery of bronze-casting.
In the splendid foundries of Chantrey and Westmaeott colossal statues, twelve feet high, are cast at a couple
of heats; and the whole process is exhibited to any one whom curiosity or chance may happen to conduct
to the artist’s studio when the moulds are ready and the metal melted.”

The composition of bionze tor different purposes—such as medals, bell-metal, gun-metal, and works of
fine ait is, indeed, now r well understood by artists and manufacturers. The subject is referred to in a
valuable “ Manual of Metallurgy, by Mr. John Arthur Phillips ; and there are some interesting notes on the

subject by Mr. Robert Hunt, in the Art-Journal for May 1852 (p. 149). From these sources we learn

that all the ancient Greek coins are bronzes, containing tin and copper only; while the earlier Roman coins
consist of an alloy of copper, tin, and lead. Occasionally, zinc and silver were mixed with copper in the
coins of the ancients. Mr. Phillips found that “all the bronze weapons of antiquity, whether the Roman
sword or the British celt, were of similar composition, consisting of copper, 90; and of tin, 10.” Mr. Hunt
observes, that “ in modern times the most celebrated works in bronze are those of the brothers Keller, at
Versailles. These celebrated founders paid more attention to the composition of their bronze than Avas usual
in the time of Louis XIV., or is general in the present day. The statues at Versailles are found by chemical
analysis to consist of copper, 91’68; tin, 2 32; zinc, 4 93; and lead, 1*07. The zinc and the lead are added

to produce greater fluidity in the melted mass, and to improve the colour of the metal. The bronze statue

of Louis XV. is composed of copper, 82 45; zinc, 10 30; tin, 4T0; lead, 3T5. In melting bronze, much
care is required to prevent the tin, which is a volatile metal, from being lost. An incautious founder might
commence his work with a bronze of the best proportions, and conclude with nearly pure copper, the tin
having passed off as oxide of tin in the furnace.” Mr. Hunt cites the column of the Place Vendome in Paris
as an instance in which this has actually occurred.

Whilst, however, the purely scientific elements of bronze-casting are no longer shrouded in mystery, there

are some artistic details of finishing and colouring, upon which the effect of works in this material chiefly

depend. Mr. Hatfield, to whom the public are indebted for the very beautiful figure which we now engrave,
may be regarded as having achieved a complete mastery over these details ; and although perfectly justified in
declinino* to communicate them to the world during his lifetime, he will not, it is to be hoped, allow' them to
be lost after his death.

A YOUTH AT A STREAM.

Before, however, we advert to that gentleman and his previous productions, a few words are due to the
distinguished sculptor of the graceful figure before us, and to the work itself. The “ Youth at a Stream ” was
characterised last year (in a series of papers in the “ Morning Chronicle,” which we have already quoted)
as “ one of the most graceful and refined statues in the whole Exhibition. The elegant lines of the composition,
the roundness of the limbs—never losing beauty, and yet sacrificing no anatomical proprieties—remind us
forcibly of the antique; although in no portion of the figure can be detected any servile imitation of ancient
precedent. The timid action of the advanced leg—the foot just touching and shrinking from the water—
is beautifully expressed; and the varied composition of all the lines adapts the figure singularly well for
reproduction in bronze.”

Mr- Foley, A.R.A., like too many other English artists, has not had the advantage of foreign travel,
nor of prosecuting his studies under any particular master. He has, however, been assiduous in his devotion
to Nature, and in his study of the best models of Art which this country can afford. He was originally a
student at the Royal Dublin Society, and afterwards at the Royal Academy of London. The history of his
artistic progress may be briefly told; for his works, though admirable, are few in number. In the year 1838
he produced a statue of “ Innocence,” being his first attempt at an original work. His exquisite group of
“ In° an d the Infant Bacchus ” was completed in 1840, and has been executed in marble for the Earl of
Ellesmere. A figure of the “Wanderer” was exhibited in 1842; and in 1844 Mr. Foley exhibited the model
of the piesent exquisite work in Westminster Hall. The grace and beauty of the figure were at once univer¬
sally lecognised. The model was purchased by her Grace the Duchess of Sutherland, and is now at Trentham;
and Mr. Foley very soon afterwards received instructions from the Royal Commissioners to execute a statue
for the Houses of Parliament. The “Youth at a Stream” was reproduced as a statuette in bronze, for the
Art-Union of London. The model for the statue of “ Hampden,” since executed in marble, and placed in
St. Stephen’s Hall, Westminster, was completed in 1847 ; and, besides proceeding with other works for the

Royal Commissioners, Mr. Foley has modelled a composition called the “ Mother,” which may be seen in the

•<

present exhibition of the Royal Academy (1852).

In a communication with which Mr. Foley has obligingly favoured us, he adverts to the extreme difficulty
winch he experienced in the execution of the subject of our engraving. The exact type of nature he required
" as "°t attainable; and it was necessary, from the peculiarity of the action, to deal with it to a great nicety,
to prevent its becoming stiff and fixed. It was obviously difficult to drill the models he had to use into tlie
spirit of the action. Mr. Foley justly observes, “The style of figure here represented is far more difficult to
master, unless in a state of repose, than a more muscular form. If the anatomy be too much developed, the
grace and softness peculiar to the subject are lost; whilst if it be not rendered sufficiently distinct, the work
becomes tame and insipid. At one time I thought of giving it up as an insurmountable task.”

Mr. John Ayres Hatfield, who has so successfully produced Mr. Foley’s work in bronze, received only
three years’ instruction in art, and that of a very ordinary description. Having been apprenticed to a worker
m metal, he entered into business for himself before he was twenty years of age, and is still a young man.
His early operations were limited to works in bronze and or-molu for Messrs. Baldock, Swaby, Emanuel
Brothers, and other dealers. About ten years ago, under a commission from the Art-Union of London, he
successfully reproduced in bronze a small marble bust of Hebe, by Mr. A. Gatley; and he has since been
employed by several distinguished connoisseurs and artists. Being introduced to the Duke of Sutherland, he
restored for his grace a large bronze figure of Genius, which had been blown from the summit of the clock-
tower at Trentham; and the ability he displayed in this work excited the admiration of Sir Charles Barry
and others well qualified to appreciate such works. Mr. Hatfield has since been employed by Her Majesty
at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. In the year 1848 he received a silver medal from the Society
o Arts, tor some admirable specimens of chasing; and in the following year His Royal Highness Prince

X ! ’ “ / A "'. ° f Ule SamC S ° ciety ’ l’ resented t0 him «« gold medal for his bronze castings. Besides
‘ 6 , N ° ,. ’ ah ' eady mentioned ’ Ml ‘ Hatfield has executed for the Art-Union of London a figure of

11 s , seen ng, by W. B. Kirk, and a bust of Her Majesty, reduced by Mr. Thorneycroft from the original

. la ” Ie -' " h,S Z6al f0r the attai nment of perfection in his art, Mr. Hatfield has undertaken numerous
expei intents; and has twice endangered his life by accidents arising in the prosecution of them.

•' . A ■ 'o

N WMTE C -! I N A B V j 0 1 ) H N N c. A J D l DUBOIS 0 P ‘f‘A R I $ .

M ■ N • N't * N r - B I I 3 ** E. - JULY 5 I B.s; a V X N

• :,R A i R TO H l ,) |J f f N

PLATE LXXVIII.

VASE IN WHITE CHINA,

BY JOUHANNEAUD AND DUBOIS OF PA HIS.

In our remarks on Plates XIV. and XXXI. we have endeavoured to bring* together some general
information concerning the progress of the manufacture of porcelain in France, as illustrated by the history
of the royal manufactory at Sevres. In the present notice we shall follow up those remarks by tracing the
coincident developement of the ceramic art in the same country, when stimulated by a spirit of commercial
enterprise instead of state patronage and monopoly.

There is scarcely any ot those branches of industry which may be regarded as staple in every great
country, the history of which exhibits more rapid developement or more popular extension than that which involves
the employment of that primitive instrument, the potter’s wheel. Thus it is remarked by M. Costaz,* that
there were only four manufacturers of porcelain residing at Paris in the year 1789; whereas their number
had increased in the year 180(3 to no fewer than thirty-three. This great increase was influenced in a considerable
degree by the popularity of the hard china manufactured from the kaolin discovered at St. Yrier, in the
department of the Haut-Vienne and Limoges. Around St. Yrier, as may readily be supposed, many small
manufacturers established themselves at an early period; and among them may be noticed, as the most
important, the MM. Alluand, whose successors have increased their transactions to so great an extent, that
in the year 1844 they gave employment to 400 workmen.

In the Catalogue of the first Exhibition of the products of French Industry, which took place in the
year VI. of the Republic (1798), we find, in addition to the objects contributed by the royal establishment at
Sevres, many works of very great beauty by Dihl and Guerliard,—who, in conjunction with the MM. Nast,
may be looked upon as the earliest independent representatives of the higher departments of their art. The latter
enterprising manufacturers have devoted themselves especially to the production of fine china; and, taking
advantage of the scientific investigations so liberally communicated from time to time to those interested in
the subject, and at length given to the public by M. Brongniart, they have contrived to keep pace with,
and even to rival, the beautiful productions of Sevres. In the first French Exhibition we certainly find
the names of two manufacturers of common earthenware; but their goods would appear to have been rather
of the nature of pipeclay, and common porous wares, than even what is properly understood as earthenware.

In the second Exposition—that of the year IX. of the Republic (1801)—the names of Messrs. Utzschneider
and Co., of Sarreguemines, first appear,—although at that period their productions were little more than what
is generally described as faience, or stoneware. In the following year, on the occasion of the tenth Exposition,
a great display took place, to which the provinces largely contributed. The ordinary faience, which we
find was then extensively manufactured in France, consisted of a common clay body with a metallic glaze,
rendered opaque by tin,—the same, in fact, which was employed in England prior to the great improvements
introduced by Wedgwood. It is scarcely necessary to observe, that we are indebted to that great man
for the improvements which converted this clumsy and fragile material into the compact earthenware and

* <f Notices sur les Objets envoyes a [’Exposition de ^Industrie Fran$ai$e, 1806.”

VASE IN WHITE CHINA

ironstone so largely used in the present clay ; and it is gratifying to find the services which he so rendered
to industry fully appreciated by the French savans. In the records of the Exposition of 1 »34 we find the following
observations by M. Brongniart on the state of the manufacture in France at that period«In the present
exhibition we meet with a kind of pottery new in this country, although it has long existed in England,
where it has appeared under the name of ironstone-china. Under the somewhat ambitious designations ot
porcelaine opaque and porcelaine dure, our manufacturers are now commencing its introduction into h ranee.”

Although this variety of pottery is compounded of the same materials as china, but in different piopmtions,
it differs essentially from that material in one respect; for whilst the latter is more or less transparent,
this is opaque. It must be obvious that the quality of transparency implies an absolute fusion of the particles
composing the material; while an opaque material, of a more or less sandy or eaithy fracture, must necessarily
consist of particles held together only by some cementing ingredient, instead of a perfectly homogeneous sub¬
stance. The discovery of this variety of porcelain was justly regarded in France as a new starting-point; and
that country is indebted to the exertions of one of its most distinguished chemists and savans , M. de St.
Amand, for a knowledge of the processes in Use in England. That gentleman visited many establishments in
this country, and has recorded the results of his examinations in the Transactions of the “ Soeicte d'Encourage-
ment ” for the year 1824. On his return to Paris he proceeded to Sevres, to put in practice, under the
auspices of M. Brongniart, at that time director of the royal manufactory, the experience he had gained
during his visit to England. M. de St. Amand also conducted experiments at Creil and at Montereau, and
specimens of the results of his labours may still be seen in the ceramic collection of the royal establishment.
Through his exertions manufactories were successfully founded at the two last-named places, as well as at
Choisy de Valentine, near Toulouse.

Thus, while we may fairly give to France credit for having preceded this country in carrying to perfection,
and, indeed, introducing to general use, elaborately-decorated objects in the finest china, we may justly lay
claim to the merit of having elevated the more ordinary and popular processes of manufacture to such a
degree of excellence as to supply to all classes of the community an approximation to the beauty and luxury
of the more costly manufacture. Taking advantage of these processes, Messrs. Utzsehneider and Co. have
not only improved the character of production in France, but have also succeeded in reducing the price to
the lowest possible amount. The same remarks will equally apply to Messrs. Le Boeuf and Milliet, of
Montereau-faut-Yonne and Creil, in the department of the Oise. j

As Ave contemplate engraving in a future number a richly-decorated example of French porcelain, we
shall defer for the present any remarks on the ordinary processes of decoration; and shall content ourselves
with calling the attention of the reader to the elegant form of the vase, which has been so skilfully executed
by Messrs. Jouhanneaud and Dubois, of the general taste of whose productions it may be regarded as a happy
specimen.

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Full text of "The industrial arts of the nineteenth century. A series of illustrations of the choicest specimens produced by every nation, at the Great Exhibition of Works of Industry, 1851 .."

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